


Time to fight fears, for once and for AUll

by Seiyofira



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga), ジョジョの奇妙な冒険 | JoJo no Kimyou na Bouken | JoJo's Bizarre Adventure
Genre: AU-gust 2020, Angst, Character Death, Cute, Friendship, Hallucinations, Hospitals, Hurt, I swear there will also be Angst at some point, Mentioning Dead People, Multi, Psychological Trauma, YGO Collab Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-31
Updated: 2020-08-30
Packaged: 2021-03-06 05:00:03
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 11
Words: 20,843
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25637689
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Seiyofira/pseuds/Seiyofira
Summary: Hi! These will be some scattered works for AU-gust 2020, which will either revolve around Yu-Gi-Oh! DM or JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, I will put the used AU prompt as well as either YGO or JJBA at the beginning of each chapter. They do not build a consistent story!
Comments: 13
Kudos: 6
Collections: AUgust 2020





	1. a good coffee doesn't make up for loneliness, but it sure tastes good

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I ditched the Fantasy AU because reasons and I'm starting with a cute Coffee Shop AU in which Yuugi and Ryou become friends. I'm sorry for everyone who wanted this to be a ship. Fite me.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Coffee-Shop AU - YGO*
> 
> Relationship: Yuugi and Ryou - platonic
> 
> Hey!
> 
> Enjoy the ride <3

His favourite coffee shop had been closed for several months now, and slowly but surely, Ryou got sick of having to brew his own cheap brand coffee at home before heading to the morgue. As a mortuary make-up artist, being surrounded by grey-faced dead people all day long, he damn well needed some coffee to not end up like one of them. He knew how morbid his jokes about the dead were, but it was a necessity to keep a sane head in a job like that. Dragging himself across the streets of Domino City, passing a handful of other coffee shops that were all less than average, his eyes got lured to a flashy neon-sign atop of his closed-down favourite coffee stop.

_Millennium Brew._

And below, their horrible catch phrase.

_Hot coffee for longer than your average century._

Ryou snorted. What a stupid name. Then again, the last shop, owned by this cool dude called Otogi, who closed his shop due to expansion to Tokio, was called Rainbow Latte. Their coffee was divine though. Which only reminded Ryou that he, in fact, had forgotten his not-so-divine coffee at home. Damn.

As there was no possibility of him surviving the day without at least one good hit of caffeine, he tried to give the new and funky looking shop a try. Open from 8.30am to 8.30pm, that was already a plus. 

Upon entering, Ryou noticed that the shop was full to the brim with customers, and a rather short person with the spikiest and wildest hair Ryou had ever seen anxiously turned around, only to immediately smile at his customer.

“Good morning! Welcome to Millennium Brew, I’m the owner, Yuugi Mutou. I’m glad you found your way in here!”

Ryou looked around, and the shop looked… nice. It had very simple square-shaped oak tables and black chairs that were initially meant to be used outdoors, but they emitted a certain elegance in their simplicity. Every table had a different kind of arrangement of flowers on it, and the lights were dim light bulbs attached to black wires. The wires all started right above the counter, then distributed across the shop, hanging and spreading like bulbs on a chandelier, but squigglier and less posh. Everything looked neat, simple, and inviting.

Walking up to the counter, Ryou checked the menu and inwardly cheered. They had hazelnut mocha - just like Rainbow Latte - and they had it on their menu, so he didn’t need to customize his order every time.

“What can I get you?”

“Ahh, can I get a… Hazelnut mocha please?”

“Sure, regular milk? And what size?”

“Ah, do you have coconut milk, then I’d take that. And large, please!”

“Coming right your way!” The shorter man with stunning purple eyes chimed, before turning around and working on Ryou’s order.

“E-Ehm. How much will that be?”

“Ah, don’t sweat it. It’s your first time here, so it’s on me.”

“Oh!” Ryou was stunned by the polite owner and barista, unsure if he should engage in small talk or not. The decision was taken from him, as the owner started to casually instigate in said small talk.

“So, what do you work as? I’m Yuugi, by the way.”

“I-” Usually, Ryou used excuses to not be honest about his job as people always asked the most idiotic questions about it, but he decided to try his best with honesty today. There was nothing to lose, after all. “I work as a mortuary make-up artist. And I’m Ryou, nice to meet you.”

“Oh! That sounds amazing. Do you want me to ask you all the stereotypical questions that will annoy you? Like… Aren’t you scared?”

Ryou giggled at the remark. This wasn’t how he expected the conversation to go, but he very much liked it.

“It’s like people asking me if I know how to foam up milk because I’m a barista.” Yuugi continued, speaking over the loud and screeching noise of the steaming wand. “Like, yeah, dude. I’ve been doing this for four years now, I’m glad you asked me if I can make milk to your desired consistency.”

“Oh dear Ra, people really ask you stuff like that?”

“They also ask you if you’re scared of the dead, don’t they? You work with dead people the whole day, I’d be more scared of living if I were you.”

“True that.”

Snickering to himself, Yuugi finished Ryou’s order and handed it over.

“Careful, hot.” A flirty wink followed.

“Thanks, i-it smells great!” Ryou stuttered, almost choking on his own spit.

A line of new customers already formed at the counter, and Yuugi nodded at them, turning to Ryou once more.

“Hope to see you soon! Bye!” Serving the next customers, Yuugi only shot another glance at Ryou and quickly waved at him.

“Ah! B-bye!” Ryou stammered, and afraid of embarrassing himself, he darted outside with his coffee.

This was the absolute best coffee he ever had. Not even Otogi’s custom order was as smooth, as creamy, and simultaneously as strong and effective as this one coconut milk hazelnut mocha. He would drink twenty of those if it didn’t mean falling into a dangerous caffeine-shock as a consequence. 

Work was slow, people didn’t like dying in Domino City, so he only had to work on two people. One elderly woman, whose skin was flawless, and only needed a light foundation, some manicure, and a bit of blush, and one older man, who needed some more matching of shades and a lot more finesse to cover the grey tone his face carried. Couldn’t blame the dead for appearing pale though. The rest of his shift, Ryou surfed around on the internet, looking up how much caffeine a person could take in without dying, before heading home, spotting the coffee shop once more on his way. It was still unusually busy in there, even after 5pm. 

On cooler nights, Ryou sometimes went for a jog if he felt like work didn’t wear him out enough. It was one of those nights, and he, yet again, found himself in front of the Millennium Brew, five minutes prior to closing.

Ryou didn’t know what drove him, but he stopped and entered the shop, looking around, trying to spot the owner. A familiar bundle of untamable spikes of hair rushed up from the counter.

“I’m sorry, the machines are alrea- Oh! Hey! Ryou was it, right?” Yuugi’s eyes lit up, and then, just as fast, he frowned. “Was there something wrong with your order this morning? Did I forget the hazelnut?”

Why did Ryou enter the shop again? He had no reason, except to maybe be able to have a casual chat with Yuugi.

“Ah. N-no! I thought I’d stop by to tell you that it was the best coffee I’ve ever had! Really. I looked up how much caffeine I could drink without dying.” Smooth. Dodging bullets like that guy from that one weird movie where the world is only a simulation.

Yuugi let out a laugh, covering his face with one hand, before he held up a bag of pre-ground coffee beans that was next to the coffee machine.

“We also have decaf, and, really, the difference is barely noticeable!” Yes. Decaf. That was a thing. Ryou felt like that one time in school where people asked what his favourite animal was and he answered ghosts instead of an actual animal. Embarrassing. 

Yuugi kept on giggling for a while until he grabbed two cups from under the counter. 

“Would you like to stay for some tea while I finish cleaning up?” An odd invitation, but Ryou couldn’t decline, even if he wanted to. With a cup of steaming fruit tea he sat there for a while, looking at Yuugi cleaning in silence, before he felt guilty for just… being there and using up space.

“Can I help you somehow?”

“You could take out the trash, if you want? I’m almost done!”

Ryou took out two full bags of trash and decided that he would never use plastic straws ever again. And probably try to avoid packaging in general, since the amount of trash was abnormal.

Coming back, Yuugi was taking off his dark purple apron, washed his hands, and sat down next to Ryou’s cup of tea with his own. 

They chatted for a while, about everything and nothing, and it quickly became clear that they both had a similar kind of view on the world, and even similar hobbies. They both loved playing board games, card games, video games, and were into the same kind of cheap horror movies. 

Looking at the clock behind the counter, Yuugi yawned.

“How did it turn 10pm already?” He complained with a smile.

“Oh wow, really?” Ryou turned his head to check the clock as well, and yes, it was 10pm already.

“Yeah, I have to be here at 8am tomorrow, we should get going…”

“Sure! Hey, wanna exchange numbers?” Bold move and bold of Ryou to assume that Yuugi would just share his phone number on the first day, but Yuugi still smiled at him before grabbing a napkin and a pen, scribbling down his phone number.

“Text me whenever.”

“Okay. See you tomorrow?”

“Well, if I don’t lose the ability to foam up milk that is, yes.”

“Maybe the dead will haunt me in my sleep, but I’ll try my best to be here.”

They shared a soft laughter and left the shop, each of them going into a different direction.

Of course, Ryou was there the next day, as well as Yuugi, but this time, he paid for his coffee, and Yuugi put some extra hazelnut syrup in his mocha. They soon started to hang out besides work, playing games on weekends at Yuugi’s place, or watching the worst horror movies at Bakura’s place. It felt like they knew each other for ages already. 

On another evening of jogging, Ryou confidently entered the Millennium Brew (the slogan still sucked), helping Yuugi out where he could while idly chatting.

“You know, I decided to open up a coffee shop after getting the inheritance money from my grandfather. He died two years ago. Before that, I worked at other coffee shops, so I was confident I could handle this.”

“Oh, I’m so sorry to hear!”

“It’s fine! He lived a happy life.”

They changed subjects again, talking about family, school, how they ended up in a small town like Domino City (Ryou recently moved there due to a job offer) and other, more trivial things.

They became friends, good friends, and quickly enough, Ryou was a solid part of Yuugi’s small but loyal circle of friends. Welcoming Ryou as if he was a part of the gang for ages already, they started hanging out together more often, going to arcades, doing movie nights, and even more adult things like... cooking food together.

For Ryou, who spent most of his life alone or in company of the dead, this was the most unexpected twist in his life. All because of a tiny coffee shop with the silliest name he had heard. _Millennium Brew._

Yes, the most unexpected twist, but also the best one he ever was allowed to experience. New friends, a new place to get coffee, and with that, a way out of solitude and loneliness. Ryou felt happy, for what felt like the first time in his life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! You made it!
> 
> Thanks for reading <3
> 
> Xoxo Sei


	2. not a planned, but a well needed revenge

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Josuke is, as per usual, late for class. Styling hair just takes time, man. 
> 
> College AU revolving around Josuke saving Okuyasu from his big bad brother and then supporting and helping him as a new friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *College AU - JJBA*
> 
> Relationship: Implied Josuyasu
> 
> Welcome to Day 2 of AU-gust!
> 
> Enjoy the ride

Oh no, fuck. Fuck. Josuke was late again. His mother was already at work, and hadn’t cared about waking him up.  _ You’re old enough now to get up alone _ , she kept saying. Studying media sciences was a pain. Maybe he should just skip the first class? His hair was a mess, a true mess, and it would take ages to get it into the flashy pompadour he usually wore.

He made it to the third class, earning annoyed glares from everyone focussing on the slides at the front. At least he was old enough to not be bullied anymore. Except for a warning glare from the professor, nothing happened. Not until lunch. Koichi, his girlfriend and Shigechi were gulping down the cheap and gross cantine lunch at the so-called nerd table. Josuke wasn’t considered a nerd, but he would never skip lunch with his old high-school friends.

Ah, great. He forgot his sandwich at home, and since he’d rather die than eat the nasty stuff they called lunch at the cantine, he just skipped eating altogether.

From the corner of his eye, Josuke noticed someone wearing a weird pimped old uniform, sitting at the dirtiest and sombrest appearing table. The uniform had dollar signs on it, and he looked rather ghetto, but kept idly poking his fork into the concoction of potatoes and miserable cooking skills.

“Who’s that dude?” Josuke lowered his head and whispered to his friends.

“That’s Nijimura Okuyasu. He’s a new student, I think. He was in my class today.” Koichi answered, scrunching his nose when he got a whiff on what the cantine declared as  _ ‘steak’ _ , deciding to not finish his lunch today.

“He’s weird, and stupid.” Koichi's girlfriend added nonchalantly. Josuke hated how judgemental she was most of the time, and wondered what things she could offer Koichi other than jealousy and possessive yandere behaviour. 

Focused on their lunches again, no one noticed that Josuke was still observing Okuyasu at the shady table in the corner, not until a person walked up to him and shouted into his face.

“Heya, brother, didn’t expect you to actually find the cantine by yourself. You’re too stupid to even breathe. How did your classes go? Daddy gonna be proud of you?” The blonde haired guy laughed, and Josuke felt his skin crawl in an unpleasant way.

“Oi, Keicho, cut the crap.” Okuyasu replied, not bothering to look up at his brother.

Keicho pushed his brother’s face down while still laughing out loud, and Okuyasu’s face dove into the unpleasant looking lunch that he hadn’t touched yet. The thugs joined Keicho’s laughter (out of courtesy mostly), and Josuke was baffled by Okuyasu’s lack of resistance. He didn’t even know the dude with the shiny modified school uniform, and yet he wanted to punch the guy molesting him until he would apologize for his actions. 

Once Keicho let go and started walking away, still hysterically laughing with his group of idiots, Okuyasu snorted, catching his brother’s full attention.

“You that desperate for attention, bro?” Okuyasu smiled creepily, wiped his face roughly, took his tray and left.

A couple of students started laughing at Keicho, and his face turned a couple of shades darker. He angrily scoffed, then stomped away, his thug friends following.

“You’ll pay for that, stupid brother!”

  
  


The afternoon was quite unspectacular. The classes were boring, so Josuke stared outside the window, thinking of the newest racing game that was released. He really wanted to buy it, and he planned to head to the mall to get it right after class. 

F-Mega II, with a massive selection of racing cars, and they were even customisable. Exciting!

“Don’t forget to be on time tomorrow for our trip. Safe travels home!” The professor announced, and then dismissed the class. Everyone had previously packed their bags and stormed outside, yearning for free time. His friends, Koichi, his girlfriend and Shigechi attended some sort of literature or book club, (and except for Koichi and Shigechi, it was entirely composed of girls) so Josuke had to get the desired game alone. After a quick stop in the restroom that ended up taking a lot longer than planned since... - hairstyle - Josuke walked down the empty hallway towards the back exit of the building, surprised to hear several voices shouting.

“I will make sure you never come home again, Okuyasu!”

“Keicho, stop. Why would you do that?”

“I’m just going to say it was an accident. You tripped, and your stupid brain imploded since it’s so empty.”

“Oi, you’re being mean...”

A pained grunt, some giggles, and something heavy thumping onto gravel. Josuke knew, and his sense for justice kicked in faster than the rest of his brain, as he found himself sprinting towards the exit faster than anticipated.

“Leave him alone!” His mouth also worked quicker than his brain sometimes, and only after his pressured demand did he see Okuyasu on the ground, jaw clenched, blood streaming out of his nose.

“Who are you?” Keicho smirked. “Okuyasu doesn’t have friends, he is too stupid for that. Just walk away.”

“No, I won’t let you hurt him anymore!”

“He’s my brother, I do with him what I want.”

Josuke walked closer towards the scene that played in front of him and placed himself in front of Okuyasu in a defensive stance.

“You gotta get through me first.”

Keicho and his thugs laughed, cracking their knuckles.

“We’ll walk through you and your silly hair like an army of soldiers.”

The air stood still, and a gloomy aura started surrounding Josuke. His brow twitched in-sync with his lips, and an eerie shadow was cast over his face.

“What did you just say about my hair?” 

Josuke’s world wasn’t usually black or white, there were plenty of shades in between as well. Bad people weren’t necessarily always bad, and everyone deserved justice. Good people could have bad traits, and that was just as fine. Nobody was a perfect human, but everybody was complete in their own way. 

When it came to insulting his hairstyle, there was no excuse though. It was white. Or black. Dark black. Blackest black. Blackout black.

With no further warning, Josuke sprinted towards Keicho, eyes focused on the floor. Keicho didn’t realize how much he fucked up until Josuke lifted his head and their eyes met. Bloodlust was an understatement, and the punch into Keicho’s lower right jaw felt more like a truck driving into his face at 60mph. An unpleasant crack followed, and before the blonde guy could call for his thugs or raise his arms in self defense, Josuke lifted his knee, and he lifted it very fast, hitting his enemy right between his legs. Howling in pain, Keicho tumbled forward, falling onto his knees next to Josuke. His legs were shaking in pain, and his jaw felt like it had been crushed into a jigsaw puzzle of bone fragments. 

Keicho’s thugs bailed, and the main foe wasn’t gonna get up anytime soon, so Josuke stretched the leg he used for the kick, a satisfying readjustment of his almost popped out knee cap making him slowly exhale in relief.

“Why did you do that? Why did you help a stupid person like me?” Okuyasu approached Josuke with the so far unanswered question, overwhelmed by the circumstances of the situation.

“I wanted to help you out. This guy seemed like a dick, and you don’t. Then, he insulted my hair. Which is, as you see, a no-go.” Okuyasu let out a laugh, eyeing Josuke, who turned towards him, up and down.

“I think your hairstyle is…”

Josuke flinched, feeling anger already bubble up in his chest.

“Amazing! It suits you, really!”

“You think so?”

“Oi, I’m too stupid to know how to lie!” 

He liked Okuyasu. Josuke really thought that he appeared to be a cool guy. His style was particular, his smile was a bit creepy but genuine, and he seemed to be a very honest and friendly person despite low-key looking like a thug himself.

“Thanks, I really appreciate it.” Josuke smiled at him, and saw that Okuyasu’s mirrored smile didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Sorry for beating up your brother, I-” Keicho slumped to the ground after his knees gave in, illegible curses accompanying the ached grunts. Josuke cleared his throat, feeling slightly embarrassed for his doings. “As I was saying, sorry for beating up your brother, I know that’s not nice.”

“That’s fine, he has been bullying me since I can think, if I even can think. But…” Okuyasu scratched his chin idly, looking up as if he tried to recollect thoughts that were assembling in his head. “If I come home now, dad will throw me out. He wouldn’t accept Keicho hurt because of me. He sent me to college to learn something, or maybe to make a fool out of myself, but not to get Keicho’s face broken.”

“Oh, damn.” Josuke fucked up. Making new friends wasn’t so easy, he reckoned. He already fucked up before even attempting to actually be friends. 

“I could go to a hotel for the time being…”

“How about you crash at my place? My mother will be alright with it.” (Josuke hoped she would be).

“You don’t even know me?” Okuyasu raised an eyebrow. “I could be a bad guy!”

“You’re certainly not worse than your brother.”

“Pfff, you’re right about that.” 

Leaving Keicho cowering on the floor, Okuyasu and Josuke made their way away from the college building, aiming for the next bus stop.

“So, you meant that? For real?”

“Meant what?” The confusion in Josuke’s face took the shape of a raised eyebrow and a blank, almost dumb-founded expression.

“About crashing at your place?” Insecurity trailed along with Okuyasu’s question, and Josuke almost heard his new friend’s voice tremble in fear.

“Oh! Sure! Absolutely! If you don’t mind me beating your ass at F-Mega II!”

“What is F-Mega II?”

Josuke widened his eyes in shock. “You don’t know about the video game?”

“N-no?”

“Oh, it’s on, you need to crash at my place now, because we are going to buy that game, NOW, and then I’ll kick your ass.”

“I-… ”

“Let’s go, Oku!”

After having bought the last available copy of F-Mega II in the way too crowded mall, Josuke called his mother from the next phone booth, and while Okuyasu waited at a safe distance, he observed Josuke wildly gesturing at his mother, who was on the other side of the line, in fact, not able to see him gesturing.

Okuyasu felt himself tearing up at the thought of having a new friend, or more, a friend at all, and was equally scared to just bolt into someone’s life so hard and fast. Josuke didn’t have to save him, Josuke didn’t have to let him crash at his place, he didn’t have to be so nice. Not to someone as stupid as Okuyasu. 

It would be a dramatic anecdote to say that the sun was already setting the moment Josuke got out of the phone booth, but then again, it was autumn, and despite the unusual warm temperatures, the sun set quite early. 

“She said yes, somehow.” 

Okuyasu sniffled and tried to pull himself together. “Thank you so much, Josuke!”

“No worr-” A rather loud growl interrupted and startled both of the boys. Josuke didn’t eat. He skipped breakfast, he skipped lunch, and then he used energy to punch a weird dude with blonde hair. A furious blush spread across Josuke’s, and he immediately shielded his face in embarrassment.

“I know an italian restaurant, their food is amazing and the owner is the coolest guy! Tonio. How about I invite you?”

“That sounds way too much like a date.” Josuke blurted out, giggling to himself, still flustered after his stomach howled, and maybe because the suggestion of that sounding like a date didn’t sound so bad to him.

“I wouldn’t mind, bro. How about ice cream for the way? My treat!” 

Josuke’s blush spread across his face like a wildfire and turned a darker red. Hungry, confused, and happy at once, he only nodded shyly, following Okuyasu to the famous ice cream shop around the corner. There was no line, as they were starting to wrap things up before closing the place for the day. The boys still got some ice cream, and had a great dinner, talking about this and that. Okuyasu really wasn’t the brightest candle on the cake, but his charm and his bubbly character easily made up for the minor lack of intelligence.

They arrived home too late, giggling like drunk teens, and unless Tonio’s sparkling water made them drunk, it was nothing but their hormones acting up. Tomoko, Josuke’s mother, was standing in the kitchen with a cup of coffee, tapping her foot impatiently. 

“So, you’re the random stranger that wants to live here with us, all of a sudden?” She asked, and the sharp undertone in her voice made Okuyasu inwardly cower in fear, so he blurted all of his worries out. About how he wasn’t considered a family member, about how Keicho bullied him since the dawn of time, about how his father abused him. 

Tomoko stayed quiet the whole time, and after Okuyasu poured his heart out, she pulled him into a motherly hug and assured him a safe place at her home, as long as he would help out as much as he could. 

Okuyasu cried. Josuke wiped away some sentimental tears as well, and Tomoko did her best to keep a dry face, she was the most mature, after all. 

Okuyasu got his ass beaten at F-Mega II, but Okuyasu was never happier.

  
  


At one point, after Okuyasu dropped out of college and started working as a child care worker, Shigechi disappeared. No one knew where he went, not until there was a black letter landing in Josuke’s inbox, and within, an invitation to Shigechi’s funeral. The shorter and chubbier friend was found shredded into pieces in the woods outside of Morioh City, and if Josuke and Okuyasu knew what that would mean for their future lives, they wouldn’t have believed it at that point. The murderer of Shigechi was closer than they expected, and it was only the beginning of an unpleasant but bonding adventure which turned Josuke and Okuyasu into an inseparable and powerful duo. 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! You made it!
> 
> I'm very sorry, I really didn't like this chapter, and I'm still not happy with it. I might be changing this in the future. - but I hope you could still enjoy my poorly 4am edited bullshit, ha!
> 
> Xoxo Sei <3


	3. a green jacket and a stupid letter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Seto Kaiba didn't believe in soulmates. Why would he? Until...
> 
> Relationship: Seto Kaiba x Jonouchi Katsuya
> 
> Y'all know, a very cliché ass soulmate AU thing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Soulmate AU - YGO*
> 
> Welcome to Day 3 of AU-gust!
> 
> Enjoy the ride
> 
> Ps yes I'm European it's already past midnight here so psht ;D

Seto Kaiba sat on the couch, a book in his hand, while his step-mother buzzed around him like a busy bumblebee. She probably was anticipating all of this way more than he was and there were several factors as to why that was the case.

First of all, soulmates were without a doubt from one's home country, and Seto was currently sitting in the middle of Boston instead of Japan. 

Secondly, he didn’t believe in the common known concept of soulmates. For him, soulmates represented people that were _consumed_ for achieving happiness, only to ditch them once they got sucked dry. People used soulmates to fulfill their needs, not to make them happy. It only looked mutual because there were two people involved.

And thirdly, most importantly, he wasn’t interested in other people. Seto liked solitude, he liked being by himself (or so he told himself) and he didn’t want to spend his time searching _‘the one’_ whose first letter was going to be carved into his skin at his 18th birthday.

Seto felt the inside of his lower arm itch for hours, but so far, nothing happened. There was still hope that he wouldn’t get a soulmate and could live a peaceful and quiet life.

“I’m so excited!” His mother chimed, and he only grunted in response, checking his phone again. When was it acceptable to go to bed? 6pm? 

His phone stayed silent for most of the day, except for a text message with some formal birthday wishes from his father, and a not-so-formal text message from one of Mokuba’s friends, Atem. Okay, Atem might be Yuugi’s best friend who technically used to go to the same school in Japan, but still. Speaking of which, another text message, this time from Yuugi, popped up on the phone screen, wishing all the best and blabla.

“I hope she will be pretty.” Seto’s step-mother sang to herself.

_‘I hope she will be nonexistent’_ , Seto thought as an answer. He hated how dull his mother’s perspectives were sometimes, and it was hard to believe that she worked as a space engineer, but then again, skill didn’t necessarily need to be equal to emotional intelligence.

After finishing the book about complex coding errors for the third time, Seto checked the time on his phone, hoping that it was finally socially acceptable enough to go to bed. It was, and it must have slipped his mind that the penthouse in the middle of Boston by now was silent and empty. So his mother left for work without saying anything. Not that he cared. His phone started vibrating before he put it down, and without taking a look at who it was, he picked up, saying nothing.

“Yoooo big brother! Happy birthday! Sorry for calling so late, I was in the arcade and we totally forgot about the time! How have you been doing?”

“Thanks. And fine. Mother is annoying the crap out of me with her bubbly bullshit about soulmates.”

“Ha, I can assume… Hey, do you want to come over to Japan somewhere in January? Dad’s coming to the States, so I thought you could come here.”

“I will think about it.”

“Alright, happy birthday again, your gift will arrive in a couple of days I hope! Talk to you, bye!”

Out of the blue, a sharp pain shot through Seto’s lower arm, and he knew. It was about to happen, and honestly, he expected worse. A wave of pain rolled over him once, before it felt like someone punched a patch skin out of his arm, and then, there it was. An open wound, in the shape of a letter.

It was a _‘K’_. Seto didn’t take a second look.

Mokuba sent him a couple of exclusive booster packages for a new card game, and Seto wouldn’t have cared to open them if it wasn’t for his brother constantly asking if he got any cool cards. He did, he got one of the rarest, a so called Blue Eyes White-Dragon. Weird creature, but the blue eyes and the different shades of icy white lured him into carrying the card in his wallet at all times.

Somewhere in January, and Seto Kaiba really didn’t know what day it was anymore after writing his thesis for the last couple of weeks day in day out, he stepped out of his father’s private jet in Domino City, shaking hands with him, as the busy CEO entered the jet and left for the States without exchanging one single word.

Seto had missed Japan, his only home. He had not missed the tremendous amounts of attention his little brother asked for though. Play this with me, do that, go here, go there. 

Fortunately, it became a frequent hobby of Mokuba to visit Yuugi at his grandfather’s game shop to play this childish card game. How could they get so obsessed over a couple of cards? They played as if their lives depended on it sometimes, and Kaiba absent-mindedly scanned the rest of the shop while they were having a ‘showdown’ at the game table.

One evening, nearing the end of January, Mokuba walked into the living room - right after a very caffeinated Kaiba had finally sent in his thesis- wearing a half-elegant shirt.

“Hey, big bro! It’s the birthday of that old friend of Yuugi tonight, he asked us to come.”

“No-”

“Naturally, I said yes, so get dressed, and let’s go, it starts in like… 30 minutes.”

Seto Kaiba grunted, idly scratching his arm. The scar in the perfect bold shape of a _‘K’_ bothered him, and of course Mokuba went through a whole yearbook, picking out girls who started with the letter _‘K’_. There weren’t that many to begin with.

Mokuba being persistent, and Seto feeling guilty - he ended up at the party. That old friend turned out to be this stupid blonde guy, a mutt that he always hated, even though they never really spoke. He couldn’t remember his name, nor did he care. Seto opted for sitting in a comfy lounge chair in a corner, a beer in his hand, observing all the new and old people he had been reluctantly introduced to.

There was, of course Yuugi and Atem, the power couple (they went from friends to lovers real fast after Seto left for University), who looked less alike with each year that passed. Atem was now wearing glasses, and Yuugi had a habit of putting his spiky wild hair into a high ponytail. There was Honda, who still had a hairstyle as straight as the Eiffel Tower, and Ryou Bakura, the ghostly pale dude who seemed to attract women at will despite being shy. Then, in addition, there were some friends that Atem brought along. Two of them clearly shared the same tan as Atem did, and thus, had to be from Egypt. Mahad. And Mala. Or was it Mana? Whatever. And then, there was one girl who caught his attention in particular. Her name was Kisara, and Seto automatically assumed that she had to be from Japan, hence the name. She hung around with the blonde dude most of the time, and they chatted, shared laughs, and played video games together. 

The green jacket, the dark blue jeans, the blonde hair. Why did the mutt distract him so much from Kisara? She was stunning, bright blue eyes and white hair, paired with porcelain skin and a light blue dress. Could she be…?

Green jacket, dark blue jeans, blonde hair. Seto shook his head and tried to further analyse the people in the room. Mokuba was playing that stupid card game again with Atem and Yuugi, Ryou and Honda were emptying the snack bowls, grinning like children. 

“So, you’re the guy who studies in Boston? If you forgot, I’m Kisara.”

“Yes.” Even if she was, Kaiba would reject her. She was handsome, and that was about it, the rest was as annoying as every other person would be.

“Oh, wow. A talkative one. Doesn’t make any sense why-”

“Oi, Kisara, come here, Atem drew all parts of Exodia!”

“What?” Kisara sighed, then turned to Seto, and her eyes automatically moved to his exposed arm. “Oh! A _‘K’_...”. She smiled brightly, as if she was hiding something. “It could be…” No bare whisper had ever piqued Seto’s interest more, but Kisara had already left, cheering for Atem from across the room.

The party was boring. Boring, because he felt annoyed by Kisara’s mysterious behaviour before. Boring, because Seto clearly gave off vibes of _don’t talk to me_ , so no one dared to, not even that white haired girl anymore, who secretly grinned at him from time to time.

At one point, close to midnight, the blonde guy let out a shriek of pain and sunk to his knees, holding his right arm. Blood streamed down, but he looked at the mark on his arm, smiling as if he had won the lottery. Except for Kisara, who smiled just as bright, no one seemed to suspect anything. Green jacket, stained with blood, dark blue jeans, blonde hair. Seto felt like he was going to be sick. He always hated that dude, but something felt off, especially after the appearance of the letter on his arm.

“Jonouchi, an _‘S’_ ? I thought for sure it was going to be an _‘M’_!”

“No was, she’s way too old!”

So Jonouchi was his name. Good to know, in case he had to kick that mutt’s butt later. As the party was held at Yuugi’s game shop, he offered everyone to sleep there, but Kaiba impolitely declined, leaving shortly after.

The cold January air felt like a welcomed change from all the charming and warm vibes the guests attending the party shared, and Seto inhaled deeply, to the point of where his lungs burnt from the cold air stinging. It felt great to be alone again. The green jacket, dark blue jeans, the blonde hair. His stomach. Why couldn’t he forget about those?

“Hey, Kaiba, wait up!” A voice behind him rang through the empty streets of Domino. A figure approached, but Kaiba didn’t even think of turning around. He wanted to be alone, not chased.

“Come on dude, wait up, please!”

Kaiba stopped, and caved. He whirled around, anger flashing in his eyes. And then he saw the person approaching, clear as daylight.

The green jacket. Dark blue jeans. Blonde hair. Seto’s heart started hammering against his chest and he felt the regular but accelerated rhythm beat up to his throat.

“What do you want?” He hissed, hiding his confusion about his emotions going crazy on him.

“I have to tell you something!”

“And what would a dog like you want to tell me?”

“I wanted you to tell my name.”

“I think I caught it at the party, thanks.”

Jonouchi laughed, and Seto felt his head spinning, overwhelmed by the emotions a voice could trigger inside of him.

“Seto.”

“What?”

“I’m Katsuya Jonouchi. Nice to meet you. Would you like to walk with me for a bit?”

And suddenly, everything made sense.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! You made it to the end! Congrats :)
> 
> I hope you enjoyed my little attempt on soulmates. I personally dislike the concept of soulmates, but hey, gotta challenge yourself here and there amiright.
> 
> Xoxo Sei <3


	4. the tricks our minds play might sometimes be comforting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Seto invites Yuugi for a game of holographic chess at his game-space station (because he do be fancy like that) - figures are moved with mind control. Yuugi has two additional minds that argue with his decisions.
> 
> Or maybe, things don't really seem the way they appeared to be?
> 
> Yuugi blinked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Angel & Demon AU - YGO*
> 
> Hey y'all. 
> 
> Welcome to my european ass day 4 of this AU-gust challenge. 
> 
> I warn you: This chapter doesn't end well, and if you're easily triggered by hallucinations, please don't read this!
> 
> Oh, you're still around?
> 
> W-well, enjoy the ride!

“Kaiba, I thought we were going to play a new kind of chess? You can’t tell me I came all the way up here only to play regular holographic chess!”

Seto Kaiba snorted dismissively, looking down at his holographic chess prototype. 

“I told you we were running some tests first, before I can start working on the actual game. Now how about I crush you in a new kind of game?”

Yuugi stared at the board, confused. Regular chess, except it was holographic and worked with some sort of mind control. Alright, he could do that.

“And how does it work?” Just to be sure.

“Think of your move. Say the figure’s name and field number in your head, and it will move at your will. You will feel a mental block once your turn is done, so you can’t willingly switch shit around or cheat, Yuugi.”

“Atem never needed to cheat to beat you, so I surely won’t as well.”

“Tsk.” If Yuugi only knew that Kaiba had been in the afterlife already, only to get his ass beaten by the almighty Pharaoh, he would probably make a fool out of him forever, so he kept his mouth shut. “Start.”

“Alright. I-”

_ ‘Start on the left, start on the left! The pawn on the far left. Put him one field, no, two fields to the front!’ _

Yuugi yanked his head to the left, only to see something absurdly weird on his shoulder. It was himself, but in a white tunic with tiny gold wings and a golden halo hovering above the head. Not bigger than his own hand, angel-Yuugi wildly gestured at the chess board, not paying any actual attention to Yuugi. What the actual fuck was happening? This couldn’t be real. Kaiba must have set up something.

Alas, Yuugi followed his angelic equivalent's suggestion, and started his first move.

**Prawn to A4**

It worked, and the tiny white holographic chess figure moved to the demanded field.

_ ‘That was a mistake, Yuugi. A real mistake. You know you should listen to the King of Games, or hell, and not to this pathetic thing on the other side.’ _

In shock, Yuugi followed the voice that came from the opposite side of where angel-Yuugi still was sitting, nodding in agreement at the finished turn.

Kaiba’s prawn moved from E7 to E5.

On his right shoulder was… Atem? Except, it wasn’t. It was someone resembling Atem, wearing a black suit and… tiny red horns and a glowing red tail, no fur on it, just skin, and on the tail’s end, a tiny heart. Yuugi wanted to slap himself. Did Kaiba drug him? Was he going insane now? Maybe, in an alternative universe, there was a Yuugi who hallucinated stupid stuff like that (or even worse), but no, he was usually relatively sane and clear in his head, so what did angel-Yuugi and demon-Atem do in his shoulders?

_ ‘Ah, be quiet, ‘Temmy-boy. You have no idea how to play this game in the name of the high deity! You’re a low life with daddy issues, leave and let us play in peace.’ _ Angel-Yuugi had a surprisingly sharp vocabulary for speaking in the name of the ‘ _ high deity’ _ , or whatever that was supposed to be.

“Yuugi, your turn, or is your neuronal determination really that weak?”

Yuugi stared down at the holographic chess field. He wasn’t too bad at this game, but those two nuisances on his shoulders didn’t help him focus.

**Prawn to...**

_ ‘No, not G4, use the one on the D-field!’ _ Demon-Atem interrupted his thought process, and the figure on the board twitched. First, how the hell could Demon-Atem read his thoughts, and second, who was he to interrupt?

_ ‘No, idiot, he has to continue with the one on A4! Move it forward!’ _

That move seemed odd, and even though demon-Atem looked more like the kind of business guy one would not trust, Yuugi went with it.

**Prawn to D4**

Seto smirked, as if he already won the game, and his prawn mimicked Yuugi’s, moving from D7 to D5.

The game dragged on, and angel-Yuugi couldn’t shut up about demon-Atem being a lowlife, while his demon-y mou hitori no boku casually snorted and belittled angel-Yuugi as an insecure joke of an angel. All amongst throwing bad suggestions as for what turns to make. It was frustrating, and Yuugi tried to push their bickering outside of his consciousness, moving his figures chaotically around on the field.

After a good while and some very bad decisions, the field looked like a mess. Kaiba barely spoke during the game, but he shot Yuugi some disapproving looks at his questionable decisions.

Demon-Atem supported himself, his tiny hand holding one of Yuugi’s golden strands, and then leaned forward to eye the chess field. He snickered to himself, and angel-Yuugi shot up, mimicking the little demon’s moves, tugging on a strand of hair on the other side of Yuugi’s face.

_ ‘So _ ,’ angel-Yuugi began, _ ‘we got two prawns left, one on A4, and I told you that move was crucial, and one on G1.’ _

_ ‘Then we have one knight at C3 and the king at F3. Looks bad, dude, you should have listened to us. _ ’ demon-Atem smirked, teasingly pulling on Yuugi’s hair.

_ ‘Yeah, you really should have!’ _

_ ‘Kaiba still has five prawns left, on A and B, F and G7, his king safely hidden behind, and one prawn having a straight line down at H6. Then there is his bishop at D3 and his powerful rook at E5. Haha, you’re fucked.’ _

_ ‘Don’t say words like that, idiot!’ _

_ ‘Says the one preaching false prayers.’ _

“SHUT UP, BOTH OF YOU!” Yuugi ripped his eyes open, unbeknown to him when he had closed them beforehand, and found himself at the chess table with Kaiba, figures neatly arranged.

“I told you we were running some tests first, before I can start working on the actual game. Now start.”

That sounded familiar. Didn’t Kaiba say that only a couple of hours ago. An unwanted groan escaped Yuugi, and within the blink of an eye, he found himself sitting in the same seat, but the board was the same as his angel-demon companions described.

Kaiba’s rook moved from E5 to C5, and angel-Yuugi squealed in surprise and demon-Atem gasped right into Yuugi’s ear.

_ ‘He can’t! Move the knight out of the way!’ _

_ ‘Yeah, move him away, quickly! Down, to A2. Dad forbid, what a devilish move he made!’ _

_ ‘Yes, praise the deity, A2!’ _

“Did you guys just agree?”

_ ‘No.’ _

_ ‘Not even if the seven circles of hell freeze would I agree with that jerk.’ _

“Oh, how you ran into your demise. For the dramatic effect, I’ll tell you, bishop to B1!”

Fuck. Okay. Where to put his knight now? Was there a chance of finishing this for his favor?

_ ‘Oh, how about B4?’  _ Demon-Atem had an excited smirk on his face, and angel-Yuugi’s wings flapped like a dog wiggling its tail.

_ ‘Nah, Seto will put his rook at C4, and then-’ _

_ ‘Shut up, you fat flappy idiot. Go to B4’ _

_ ‘Don’t talk to me like that, you delinquent son of a -’ _

_ ‘I DARE YOU SAY THAT.’ _

Yuugi moved his knight to C1. He lost the game already, might as well give Kaiba the option to feel satisfied with his result.

“You know you just lost, Yuugi?” The grin that Yuugi expected Seto would have on his face wasn’t apparent.

Yuugi smirked exhaustedly. “Yeah.”

“Then let’s stop. You admitted defeat, there’s no point in wasting my time.”

_ ‘What? He didn’t! That smug bastard. Yuugi, let me get close to him, I will punch his guts out.’ _

_ ‘You’re literally the size of an apple, you dull-headed demon.’ _

“Can you guys finally shut it, you’re not REAL!”

“Who’s not real, Yuugi?” Seto cocked an eyebrow questioningly, and Yuugi found himself in front of the chessboard, figures all set up, neatly in order. With an anticipating anxiousness, Yuugi turned his head left and right, seeing his shoulders empty.

“I-… Nothing. Let’s start?”

“Are you alright, Yuugi?” The cocked eyebrow turned into a worried frown.

“Why do you ask?”

“We have been playing for a solid six hours, and you’re asking if we can start?” 

Yuugi blinked. And with every  _ blink _ , the scene that showed in front of him changed.

‘No, I’ll punch a hole in his stupid eyes!’

_ Blink _ .

“Yuugi, hey, snap out of it!”

_ Blink _ .

“Wake up, Yuugi!”

_ Blink _ .

‘Just because you’re a demon doesn’t give you the freedom of hurting others, ‘Temmy!’

_ Blink _ .

**Rook to E4**

_ Blink _ .

“Aibou? Hey, Aibou, wake up!”

_ Blink _ .

“Yuugi?”

_ Blink _ .

“He’s gotten calmer, I think we can-”

_ Blink _ .

“Mr. Mutou, are you here with us?”

_ Blink _ .

“Mr Mutou, we really need you to answer us in any way you can.”

_ Blink _ .

Nothing changed.

_ Blink. _

Yuugi was sitting on a bed, a white hospital bed, surrounded by Jonouchi, Honda, and his own grandfather, worry stretching across all of their faces. Additionally, there was a doctor and a nurse, and the doctor kept talking nonsense to Yuugi.

“Can you speak?”

_ “Uh, yeah.” _

“It seems he can’t… Yet…”

“Man, I hope he will get better, that must have taken a toll on him. Kaiba just-”

“Honda, hey, shut up. We shouldn’t trigger it!”

“Boys, let’s give Yuugi some space, he seems disoriented.”

_ “No, hey! What did you want to say?” _

_ ‘Probably about that one time…’  _ Demon-Atem sat on his shoulder again, no sign of angel-Yuugi.

_ “What one time?” _

_ ‘Where you and Kaiba went for a so-called chess game in his game space thing, and then he told you about Atem. That he visited him, that he beat him, and that Atem never wanted to talk to you again.’ _

Yuugi remembered. It all crashed down on him. How they sat on the chess table, how maniacally Kaiba laughed at him and called him pathetic, how he fell down a rabbit hole of negativity afterwards.

His life, the one he knew and treasured was over. The life he once had, simply destroyed by one solid event. One. Single. Trigger. Tears were streaming down his face. Memories of Atem, memories of Kaiba saying that Atem hated Yuugi. It was painful.

Someone kicked the door open, shoving everyone in proximity out of the way and placing himself in front of Yuugi.

“I lied.”

Yuugi looked up.

“I lied. Atem beat me. And he misses you.”

Yuugi looked down. Yuugi shut down. It didn’t matter, not anymore. To Yuugi, nothing mattered anymore. His life resembled but to a husk, an empty and hollow echo of his colorful past.

_ ‘At least you have us!’  _ Angel-Yuugi chimed into his ear, nuzzling against his hair.

_ ‘Yeah, at least you have me!’ _ Demon-Atem answered snidely, causing his angel-rival to huff in annoyance.

At least he had them.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yoyoyo! You made it to the end, congratulations!
> 
> I'm sorry for the sudden turn into angst, I don't know what came over me. 
> 
> For the next AUs, I might be skipping a couple, since life is being life, I got some towards the end of the month tho (and maybe if I find the time I will do some in between).
> 
> Gomenasai


	5. one life takes two deaths

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jonathan wakes up to a world unknown to him. Good thing Jotaro, Josuke and Rohan are there to explain, until they get assaulted and things don't go as planned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Post-Apocalyptic AU - JJBA*
> 
> Hey y'all, enjoy the ride!

As Jonathan ripped his eyes open, he did not expect darkness surrounding him, even while wide awake. He inhaled sharpy and felt his throat tighten up. There was no air. Whatever space he was in, there was no air! Banging and bashing against the shells of the case that he was locked in, Jonathan Joestar was on the verge of passing out. Lightheaded, but calm. If he woke up only to die again, then so shall it be.

Luckily, that wasn’t the case, as with a loud noise, it sounded as if someone deflated a balloon, a bright light and much needed air were in reach for Jonathan. He inhaled, this time, fresh air, or rather, just air, filling his lungs with oxygen.

“I told you to not play around with those things, Josuke!”

“Ahh, I’m sorry, but at least I got it open, right?”

Who were those voices that Jonathan heard? He tried to move his body, only to fail and awkwardly stumble forward. The support he expected from the slowly opening ‘door’ in front of him failed him, and he pushed the ‘door’ as well as himself forward, landing on his knees, the light making his eyes burn painfully.

“OH!? JOTARO, COME HERE, WE FOUND SOMETHING!”

Clacking sounds of boots running were heard, and Jonathan was still trying to regulate his breathing. Hamon flowed through every cell of his body, giving him the strength to get up and stand up straight.

He did not expect to see three people in front of him, wearing the most abstract clothing.

“Good day. My name is-”

“Do you think he is a Stand user?”

“Quit asking stupid questions, Josuke.”

“Quit whining, Rohan.”

“Shut up, both of you.” Jotaro finalized their fight, and scanned Jonathan Joestar, who was still utterly confused, up and down. “Who are you?”

“I must apologize, for I was in the process of introducing myself already. If you don’t mind.” Jonathan straightened his back and slid on hand through his hair, dust falling off of it like snow. “I am Jonathan Joestar. Whom do I have the pleasure to speak with?”

“Jotaro, tell me that he is kidding.”

“My, why should I be kidding?” Jonathan pulled out his hand sewn handkerchief, carefully unfolding it and showing it to the three men. They didn’t even glance once at the handkerchief, all eyes peeled on Jonathan Joestar.

“So you’re telling me you are Jonathan Joestar.” Rohan cut the silence, leading Jonathan’s attention on him. “What year are we in right now, if I might ask so?” 

Jonathan wasn’t stupid, he knew something was up. The way the green haired person who went by the name Rohan was dressed, a white shirt with tiny holes in it, on top of that a ragged black leather coat with a golden chain attached to the collar, it couldn’t be the same year that he died. Died? Wait, Jonathan died beforehand. He died with DIO’s head in his hands, on the cruise back in 1889.

“The last memory I can recall the year of was 1889, but presumably, that is not correct anymore. Your clothing looks way too futuristic for such an era.” Josuke gasped, slapping a hand in front of his mouth to cover the sound, his eyes wide and fixated on Jonathan.

“Jonathan Joestar, it’s the year 2000. Do you remember how you got your body back?” Jotaro was as unemotional and unaffected as if he was explaining how to put on socks to his daughter.

“No. My body? What are you implying, Sir Jotaro was it, right?”

“Jotaro is enough. About DIO and your body…” The next five minutes were Jotaro glaring at Rohan and Josuke to remain quiet, while he was explaining the current situation.

After Jonathan sank with DIO, his vampiric brother used Jonathan’s body, waiting for over 100 years to come back alive, only to hunt and track down the Joestar bloodline. The goal was total annihilation. And it worked. After killing three of his friends, Jotaro managed to burn DIO’s body and give life back to his own grandfather, Joseph Joestar. 

“But DIO’s Stand, his manifestation of willpower and strength, helped him to resurrect somehow, and over the years he smithed a plan on how to become the ultimate being.”

“I can’t believe my brother had so much evil in his heart, it breaks me to hear. I should have treated him more honorable, maybe this wouldn’t have happened…” Shuffling his feet and staring down at the floor, remorse flooded through Jonathan like blood through his veins. Jotaro gave him a dismissive glare, and continued.

“DIO turned the world into a wasteland. A network of vampires systematically killed all women and children, and turned men into allies. Now, we have three fractions fighting each other over resources and territories.”

“I- I think I might need to take a seat to properly understand all the things I have been told.”

“Let’s get you upstairs then.” Josuke offered, and Crazy Diamond checked Jonathan’s body for any injuries. Fortunate enough, except for a scar around his neck, nothing seemed even remotely damaged.

As his Hamon didn’t flow well yet, Jonathan needed a helping hand to make it into the main room of the abandoned Speedwagon Foundation Facility. Josuke was willing to provide asked help, supporting every step with care. Once upstairs, Jonathan scanned his surroundings and wasn’t sure what the most confusing aspect of the bizarre room was.

The walls were purely made out of metal, but there was moss crawling all over them. As he was guided to a chair by Josuke and was asked to sit down, Jonathan almost jumped at a weird voice resonating through the whole room.

_ ‘Terminal C of Speedwagon Foundation Facility A4642. Department of body restoration. Secrecy level S’ _

Even more surprising was everyone’s calm reaction to it, as if it was the most natural thing to hear.

“CaLab, comprime all data into one file and load it to my device.” Rohan pulled out a black and white wire from one of the panels that looked like nothing Jonathan had ever seen in his life.

_ ‘Password required.’ _

“Damn, I knew it.” An annoyed sigh by Rohan was directed at the panel with the colorful buttons and the switches and things that seemed otherworldly to the ‘old’ man sitting on the chair.

“What is all of this? Is this some sort of witchcraft? Or eastern technology? Did DIO build this? Why is it called Speedwagon Foundation?”

Jotaro turned around, previously inclined in going through a black sketchbook that he must have picked up, one eyebrow cocked. Of course, Jonathan was basically ancient, how would he understand a post-apocalyptic world like this?

“No. I think the founder of it was called Robert-something Speedwagon, but I’m not that sure. This is advanced technology, even for our time. Speedwagon developed and tested techniques that were almost extraterrestrial to us.”

There were at least another 20 questions that lingered in Jonathan’s mind, but he didn’t have the time to ask even one of them. A loud blow was heard from somewhere above, and Jotaro, Rohan as well as Josuke tensed up, ready for a fight.

“You think it’s vampires?” Rohan asked, and the disgust he expressed made Jonathan’s tongue feel bitter in empathy. Vampires were the worst.

“They could be awakened ones. Or bad Stand users.” 

Not getting the concept of one word Josuke just added to that question, Jonathan instinctively started controlling his breathing, making Hamon circle through him like he never stopped breathing for one second over the past century.

“They’re coming!” Jotaro’s voice seemed collected, “Prepare yourselves!” His words were somewhat final though, and Jonathan felt some special kind of inexplicable bond between them.

A big lab door that was originally an automatic sliding door got ripped open, and at least a dozen of half-human like creatures pushed their way inside. It was fairly odd, Jonathan saw the three men fighting, he saw the ‘awakened’ being punched and torn apart, but he didn’t see with whatever mythical energy they all fought. Two of the ‘awakened’ made it past Jotaro and the rest, aiming for Jonathan in a straight line.

“Careful, they’re going after Jonathan!” Rohan yelled and whirled around, screaming something towards Jonathan. He was prepared though, his breathing was perfect. 

“My heart resonates! The heat's enough to burn! The beat of my blood is razor-sharp!! Sunlight Yellow Overdrive!” Repeatedly punching with his fists and Hamon energy, the ‘awakened’ got ripped into shreds, leaving a bloody and musky pile of body parts in front of Jonathan. It looked horrendous, and Rohan turned away to repress the urge to gag.

“Nice move, dude!” Josuke yelled, while an invisible force took down a couple of ‘awakened’ .

“Who- K- what?” Jotaro stuttered, and even though Jonathan knew Jotaro for only a short while, he was sure that this guy with the white coat and the weird hat wouldn’t be one to stutter.

“Ohhh, Jotaro, long time no see.”

“Who’s that, Jotaro?” Rohan and Josuke asked in unison, glaring at each other annoyingly shortly after.

“Kakyoin?”

“Well, or more what’s left of him. Thanks for letting me die back then. It’s been a hot minute, but let’s just dive right into it. Hierophant Green!”

“Is that an awakened with a Stand? Fuck. Heaven’s Do- argh!” Something hit Rohan in a full frontal punch, sending him flying across the room, bashing into Josuke who tried to feather the impact.

“Star Platinum!” 

Jonathan frowned, who was Star Platinum?”

“The world!”

Wha-?

The next thing Jonathan remembered was Jotaro and that other guy, Kakyoin, missing. No more awakened, only Rohan on top of Josuke, seemingly uncomfortable with the position and situation.

“Where’s Jotaro?” 

“Get off of me! Oh, good question. He used his ability to stop time though, so maybe outside? You’re HITTING MY RIBS ROHAN.”

Stop. Time. This was getting more absurd by the second. A heart shattering cry was heard from the outside, then Jotaro’s name, Kakyoin’s name, and then silence. Too much silence. A certain silence that even caused Josuke and Rohan to stop stirring.

“That sounded…” As the silence didn’t cease, Josuke and Rohan got up, leaving the facility slowly but with a certainty of a bad feeling. Jonathan followed them suit.

Once outside, Jonathan was greeted with two things that shook him to his core. When Jotaro talked about wasteland, the resurrected man wouldn’t have dreamt of a wasteland being able to look like that. It looked like hell, the sky was decorated with a bloody red moon, and there were barely any buildings left standing. It was like a broken deserted nightmare.

The second thing made Jonathan’s stomach almost churn, and caused Josuke to yelp out in shock. Rohan grabbed Josuke’s by his arm and turned him into a hug, shielding Josuke’s eyes and mind from the scene in front of them.

On the floor, there was that red haired guy from before, Kakyoin, his green coat covered in fresh blood. The blood wasn’t his, as Jonathan saw that ‘awakened’ didn’t have red blood but more of a black already coagulated kind of blood. His eyes were open, but not ripped open, more… knowingly? He smiled. That ‘awakened’ guy smiled. Halfway on top of him was Jotaro. His face cradled into the crook of Kakyoin’s neck, eyes closed, a content smile on his lips. They looked like they were cuddling.

They were not. They were both dead.

Jonathan felt like he would never be accustomed to this kind of life. He had no other choice though, and soon enough, after a lot of grieving from Josuke’s side, the newly formed trio moved through the wastelands of the world, fighting awakened, searching, once again, for DIO.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You made it, yay!
> 
> Thanks for reading <3
> 
> Xoxo Sei.


	6. two hearts, a million pieces

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ishizu finally could admit her true feelings, but some stories are not meant to end like a cheesy movie.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Hospital AU - YGO*
> 
> Relationship: Mai Valentine x Ishizu Ishtar
> 
> Hey y'all! :D Welcome to Day.. 6? I can't even tell anymore.
> 
> I want to warn you, the following subject is rather dark.  
> Someone DIES okay no happy ending.
> 
> Enjoy the ride ;)

“How much longer does she have?”

Isn’t that how most of the stories with a fake surprising happy ending start? Isn’t this how movies declare miracles of medicine as valid forms of cinematic entertainment?

_ ‘Two weeks at max.’  _ A doctor in a clean and tailored white coat would say, and then, somewhere in between, said miracle happens, and everyone remains happy and lives on.

“We don’t know, it really depends on her decision today. This wasn’t a terminal illness or anything alike. Her brain is basically dead, and as long as the machines are on, the body will remain somewhat…  _ ‘alive’ _ .”

“Ah, what a shame. Accidents happen, but this must be hard when it comes so unprepared.”

The woman on the bed didn’t resemble the image people had of her. Big brand names with her face were visible all across the world. At the top of the Lafayette store in Paris, at the Time Square in New York, next to the TV Tower in Berlin. Not to mention the multiple campaigns that she was the representative model of in Japan - displayed in every bigger japanese city.

Her spiky blonde hair, the purple leather clothing, her seductive smirk paired with red lipstick and the most perfect winged eyeliner in the world. All of it was gone.

________________________

“Ishizu, you have to teach me how you do your liner, it looks amazing!” Ishizu smiled at Mai, walked over to a drawer to pull out a little black plastic container with a black paste in it. 

The heat of living next to the desert at noon was atrocious, but thanks to Mai’s generous donation, the Ishtars owned air conditioning in almost every room. It was only partly out of altruism, and mostly because Mai didn’t like sweating when guesting in their house in Cairo. She had several photo shoots for another big brand in front of the pyramids and some other architectural structures all around Egypt, but instead of accepting the offer to reside in a fancy hotel, Mai preferred staying with the Ishtars, for several obvious, and less obvious reasons.

Mai, as much as she didn’t admit it to anyone, disliked being alone over a longer period of time, despite travelling in solitude most of the time. The Ishtars were always busy, and there was always some sort of activity in which Mai could participate in her free time. 

Another reason was the access to amazing food. It was a pleasure to roam the streets for the best street food with Marik, or to get groceries with Rishid and to help cook traditional egyptian meals with Ishizu. 

Those were her obvious reasons, the reasons she kept visible to anyone on the surface. When Joey asked where she was in the world at the moment, when the group chat blew up at seeing a new ad with her face - she would send pictures of food, of selfies with Marik’s cheeky smile, of sightseeing tours she sometimes went on. Never did she reveal the one, least obvious reason why Mai Valentine was staying at the Ishtar household.

She was in love with Ishizu, and Ishizu was in love with her. They both didn’t even know how it started, but before they knew, they ended up making out in the kitchen while the rice was getting soggier by the second. It was a repressed sexuality that burst out of Ishizu that day. Egypt was a country where homosexuality, or any other sexuality other than strictly heterosexual tendencies, might cause issues in daily life, but Ishizu didn’t care, not after she let her feelings loose. 

With her scolding passion, Mai felt like she had been consumed that evening, not that she minded. After that, it didn’t take a long time before Ishizu came out to her family as lesbian, expecting the worst. Marik laughed at her, which led to Ishizu feeling intimidated and ashamed, until her brother finally caught his breath and was able to speak up.

“I wear crop tops and eyeliner, Ishizu, if you are safe somewhere, it’s around your gay brother.”

They laughed, Rishid being a supportive member of the family as well, and Ishizu asked herself why she, especially she, never came to the conclusion of Marik being gay. It was silly, and obvious.

Mai felt at home, for one of the first times in life, and even if her jobs led her all around the world, she never failed to return to Egypt whenever she could. 

But… As much as their relationship seemed like it was out of a fairy tale, and Mai mastered the eyeliner technique like an expert, there were nights where Mai was restless, anxious and insecure about her life. Those feelings crawled up to her when she felt at home the most. First, Ishizu didn’t know how to react, and was vastly overwhelmed by her strong girlfriend sitting on the balcony, silently weeping. 

“Let’s take Marik’s bike and drive through the city.” It was a random thought of Ishizu. Not a bad one. The ride with Marik’s (new) bike was freeing Mai of any anxiety. Okay, maybe not the ride per se, more the sensation of Ishizu clinging onto her, arms around her waist, hands on her stomach. The warmth was a blessing, even in warmer nights.

Until one night, where Ishizu offered the ride, but Mai snapped at her, saying that she didn’t need a babysitter for her feelings, that she was independent and strong by herself. Mai took the bike, Ishizu stayed at home after failing to justify that she cared, and only cared, and didn’t aim to dismiss Mai’s feelings.

That one night, Mai didn’t return.

She was on Marik’s bike when her phone began buzzing again and again. It was late, the streets were empty, so Mai didn’t care about checking her phone while riding a bike.

_ 02:38am: _

_ Please come home Mai, I’m worried. I love you - Ishizu. _

_ 02:39am:  _

_ Mai, Marik woke up upon hearing you leave with his bike, he is not amused :)  _

_ 02:42am  _

_ Darling, can you please make your way home, I have a very bad feeling. _

_ 02:46am  _

_ I love you. Take care of yourself _

_ 02:47am _

_ Mai, are you a- _

Mai never read the next text message.

It was a frontal crash with the truck. It was a miracle that Mai’s body wasn’t in pieces. But for her brain, every help was too late. The last strength she had was to type the name ‘ _ Ishizu’ _ on her phone before the world turned dark and her soul faded into the abyss.

________________________

“I apologize for being late.” A voice echoed through the hallway in front of Mai’s room where two people in obnoxiously white coats were standing.

They both looked at her, and were not surprised to find a woman in a slightly disarranged tunic in front of them, no make up, no jewelry, hair in a messy bun.

“Ah, Mrs. Ishtar, I’m glad you could make it. Did you bring any support with you?”

“No, I want to do this without my brothers. I need this.”

“Alright, we will be right back with you.”

The two doctors entered Mai’s room, leaving Ishizu to herself outside. She looked around and decided that she would from now on hate hospitals. They tried to give the hospital a warmer and more welcoming atmosphere by painting the walls the ugliest shade of light yellow. The horrible paint didn’t cover the antiseptic stench that flooded Ishizu’s nostrils, nor did it change the fact that she had to make an important decision today. One that she already made for herself.

“You can come in and see her now.” Ishizu hadn’t noticed one of the two doctors reappearing next to her. Head hanging low, Ishizu followed the white coat and entered the room. 

It felt horrible. There was no more Mai left in this room, and once Ishizu dared to look up, tears already streaming down her face, she knew that she had made the right decision. 

“Turn them off. Now.”

“Ah, but, Mrs. Ishtar, we-”

“No, I’ve made my decision. Please. I can’t look at her like that.”

The tube coming out of her nostril, the bag next to her bed, catching all bodily fluids she had no more control of, the messy hair, the pale skin and dead expression on her face. This wasn’t Mai anymore, this was only the hollow resemblance of Ishizu’s girlfriend.

“Alright. We will get the Chief Senior Physician to start the process. Would you like to wait outside?”

“No, I’ll stay with her, say my last good-byes.”

The two doctors left the room, and Ishizu, holding back sob after sob, pulled a black plastic container out of her bag, and with it, a small brush.

_ ‘You start on the outer corner of your lower eyelid and follow the natural line, this is your extension line for the wing.’ _

How Ishizu wished that Mai’s eyes would open again.

“I’m sorry for fighting with you. I love you.” She pressed a kiss on Mai’s forehead, lips trembling as she fought the imminent breakdown of her own sanity.

Five people entered the room shortly after, finding Ishizu sitting next to Mai’s bed, holding her hand. One of them introduced herself as the Chief Senior Physician.

After at least an hour of formalities, documents, questions and what so on (it was odd that they didn’t take care of it in the doc’s office, but Ishizu didn’t question the process), it was time.

“The machines will go crazy loud for a while, but we’ll make sure to turn them off as fast as we can. It’s also meant as a reassurance for us that the process is going as planned.” 

Ishizu nodded, and tried to smile. She failed, and tasted the salty tears on the corners of her lips.

It didn’t take long, and the machines were, in fact, extremely loud and distracting. But soon enough, Mai’s breath went shallow, and then she ceased to breathe, her heart stopped, and Ishizu swore she saw a smile on her girlfriend’s lips.

Mai Valentine, Age 27, 3 years after Battle City, with the most glorious and perfect winged eyeliner she ever wore, died in the Coptic Hospital located in Cairo. 

Ishizu didn’t know if she ever would feel anything other than guilt, remorse and grief in her life. Mai’s face haunted her, not only in her dreams and in her memories, but also wherever she went. Every mall, on the internet, wherever Ishizu looked, she saw Mai, Mai only, and felt her sanity chip away in a torturing and slow process.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! You made it, congratz.
> 
> Heart already shredded <3? Sorry


	7. grog and booty can't make you friends, but they're both great anyway

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Did you ever need Pirate Captain Avdol yelling at Polnareff, the new crew member, who doesn't know to steer a ship?
> 
> Here you go, I can't even make a proper summary to this.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Pirates AU- JJBA*  
> Pairing: Hint of AvdolxPolnareff and JotaroxKakyoin
> 
> This chapter was HEAVILY inspired by Sea of Thieves, and I took names of islands and booty straight out of it! It's a frkin amazing video game.
> 
> Enjoy the ride!

“We’re sailing northeast, do you even know how to bloody handle the steering wheel, you whacky bastard?” The voice belonged to a rather tanned man with two squiggly scars trailing from under his eyes to the sides of his jaw. The scars seemingly were from a fight with the Kraken, and Muhammad Avdol was one of the most feared pirates of the sea. 

His voice resonated all the way down from the crow’s nest, and the new guy, an abandoned french dude, very sad past, with hair for days and the worst sense of orientation, cowered in fear.

“Suis désolé…”

“J’en ai marre avec toi, connard!” The captain yelled down. Sometimes, he hated having to put this façade of being all tough and rude up. That wasn’t him, but it was expected as the most infamous pirates of the seas.

“Oi oi, you don’t have to be so rude, he’s new, boss, and look at him, he’s almost green from the movements of the sea.” An older man using some sort of improvised megaphone yelled upwards.

“I’m not green... eurks...“ The french guy called Polnareff protested, holding down gagging.

Avdol snorted, seeing his new crew member losing against the moods of the sea. She was a beauty, the sea, and Avdol could not understand how he once was just a regular boy on the streets of a foreign city. His parents died early, so he did all he had to to survive, until he sneaked into the lower decks of a ship in his teens. From there on, he was in love with the sea, and soon, became one of the most infamous thieves of the sea.

Unfortunately, the last crew member drowned after being too drunk playing a banjo, tumbling off the rail. Poor fella, that dude. So they recruited Polnareff.

“I see land!” The older man yelled, already making his way to rope up the sails at the right moment and slap down the anchor.

Avdol checked his compass. They were going northeast. This was not Lone Cove… This probably was Smuggler’s Bay, as the massive size of the island indicated.

“This isn’t Lone Cove, where the fuck are you leading us, Polnareff?” Avdol yelled, and he really felt honest anger bubble up in his chest.

“I- I swear, I did everything as you asked, boss!”

“Well, then why the fuck are we heading to Smugglers bay with Lisa-Lisa.”

“Who is Lisa-Lisa?”

“The ship you shithead.”

“Ah, pardon…”

Avdol took the ladder back down from the crow’s nest, walking up to the front of the ship, scanning the horizon.

“There’s another sloop already stationary, Avdol!” The older guy, Joseph, yelled. Avdol and Joseph were close friends for years, and he was the only person who could call him by his first name, like, ever. Avdol saw the sloop as well, his hand already resting on the knob of his scimitar, a reminder of his origins.

“Pol, steer to the right of the island, maybe we can surprise them. Joseph, pull up the sails to half or we will turn too fast.”

They both did as demanded, and a couple of minutes later threw down the anchor next to a shore of what was indeed, Smuggler’s Bay. Lisa-Lisa came to an abrupt halt, and Polnareff slammed his head right into the top of the steering wheel, only to bounce back and land on his ass. Joseph broke out in unstoppable fits of laughter and even Avdol let himself smile at the stupidity of the new guy, despite the tense situation.

“Joseph, you stay on the ship, just in case.”

“Will do. More time to drink all the grog from our tankard!”

Avdol snorted, and descended the rowboat attached to the back of the sloop, oars old and worn out. Polnareff, of course, was the one who had to row both of them to the shore. He dressed weird, Avdol thought to himself. A black sleeveless top and white baggy pants. Way to go for a pirate. Then again, Joseph usually looked more like a landrat and he himself was usually wearing long coats, just to show off.

“Do you think those are bad guys, boss?”

“We are the bad guys, idiot.” 

The sun was setting, and Avdol drew his scimitar, the blade reflecting the last rays of sunlight, ready to slice his enemies into several pieces. Walking around the island, Avdol and Polnareff noticed a little, almost hidden entrance into a cave.

_ “Oh, for fuck’s sake. Kakyoin, stop this bullshit!” _

_ “But Jotaro, look at the flagon, it’s beautiful!” _

_ “We’re here for a mission, we’re not pirates, stop stealing shit!” _

_ “Fuck you, I want this silver flagon, and you can’t make me stop.” _

_ “Are you sure about that, Noriaki?” _

Avdol noticed a certain tease in the last sentence, and his grip tightened around the shaft of the weapon. Behind him, Polnareff wielded a Rapier, which was an odd choice, but then again, anything about him was kind of weird. Which was somewhat cute, Avdol had to admit.

So the enemies were not pirates, which would make all of this easier. Walk around the rock, corner them in the cave, slice their guts open, and take their booty. If they had any.

“Ok, we’re cornering them, and then I’ll cut them open. Let’s go, Pol!”

“Aye-aye, cap’!”

Rushing around the corners and catching the two other ‘not-pirates’ majorly off-guard, one of them dropped the silver flagon and whirled around.

“Give us yar booty or ya’re dead!” Avdol hated this. He wasn’t a bad person, but things had to be done to survive.

“Get the fuck out of our sight, we’re not here for the booty, you can take anything after we’re gone. This is what you get for stealing, Kakyoin.”

“This isn’t my fault, Jotaro! You had to look at every stupid goddamn clam shell on the beach on our way here, we should be long gone.”

Avdol was sick of their bickering faster than he could down grog, but he was also sick of playing the bad dude. Polnareff, a couple of steps behind him, was quivering in fear, or maybe anticipation, not saying a word.

“What are ya guys even looking for?” His scimitar still raised, he flailed it around, gesturing across the room. Only now did he notice that the room in fact was full of booty. Seafarer’s Chests, Ashen Chests, anything the heart desired, and he heard the gold hoarder Shigechi at the outpost already chiming praises for all the precious loot.

“We’re here to find an old scroll about the Kraken that we want to fight! We’re sea creature hunters.”

“Kakyoin, stop blurting out the information, those are pirates!”

“Oh… Sorry…”   
  


“Good grief… Gimme a break…”

The squiggly scars were from the Kraken. On his first ride in a pirate crew, they got attacked by it, and the boat, including almost all crew members, sank. Only Avdol made it out alive, the squiggly lines a reminder of the fight he had to put up to survive.

Avdol was sick of being the bad guy. Sick of being the menacing pirate people thought he was. Joseph knew about it. Polnareff, too nice to even be on this crew, dropped his Rapier in a nervous attempt to wield it.

“Aren’t you Avdol?” The one supposedly called Kakyoin asked, cocking his eyebrow that was a couple of shades darker than his bright red hair.

“Yes, I am.”

Jotaro snorted, tugging the brim of his weird and halfway broken headgear lower into his face.

“So Joseph is in your crew, right, that old guy?” The red haired guy in a dark green coat continued, highly amused.

“Why do you know that?” Polnareff asked with a thick accent, and Avdol wanted to slap himself for taking this guy in in the first place.

“He’s my grandfather.” Jotaro commented with no emotion in his voice. Avdol’s eyes widened, and only now could he see the similarities in their facial features. “He abandoned us at some point, saying that he belonged to the sea rather than on land.”

Kakyoin had turned around in the meantime, but Avdol didn’t notice, his and Polnareff’s eyes focused on Jotaro’s smirk.

“I found it, Jotaro!” Kakyoin yelled, holding up a green tinted scroll.

“Then let’s go back to the ship and analyse it. As said, feel free to take all the booty, we’re taking our leave now.”

“Can I at least get the fla-”

“No, Kakyoin, you are not taking the flagon, let’s fucking leave.”

Jotaro and Kakyoin walked past Avdol and Polnareff, and neither of them moved. Polnareff because he was too scared, and Avdol because he still couldn’t believe that Joseph once had a family.

“Tell the old man I said hi.” Jotaro shouted back, jolting Avdol out of his thoughts.

“Wait!” He yelled back, but Jotaro and Kakyoin didn’t show any indications of stopping.

“Hey, wait! Arrete! Ey! You heard the captain, putain!”

Kakyoin stopped, turning around with a grin on his face.

  
“What is it, you big scary pirates?”

“I should just push my scimitar through your funny face for that sole reason.” Avdol hissed, before smiling warmly. Time to drop the façade.

“Let us help you with the Kraken. My first crew got killed due to it.”

“Help. With the Kraken. Pirates. Sure.” Jotaro answered, and Avdol gritted his teeth at the remark.

“I know. I know. Do it for the old man then. Come on, I’m sick of being a bloody pirate.”

“Ya what, Capt’n?”

“You heard me, Polnareff. And you are way too cute for being a pirate.”

“B-but…”

“How do we know this is not a trap?” Jotaro turned around as well now, holding the scroll in one hand, and a coconut in his other.

“I don’t know. But it’s not. If I wanted you dead, you’d already be.”

“Sure.” A nasty snort escaped Jotaro’s lips. “Okay, we accept, under one condition.”

“What might that be?”

“We have to get Joseph drunk, I want to see that old man play the hurdy-gurdy while being shitfaced.”

“Deal. Let’s go to Lisa-Lisa, our sloop, to figure out the scroll. Do you have any other crew members?”

“Only a ferocious dog.” Kakyoin answered. “He can take care of himself for the time being.”

They all burst out laughing, Jotaro and Kakyoin because they knew their dog Iggy would be a true danger to any intruder on their ship, and Avdol and Polnareff because they didn’t believe a single word of it.

Back on Lisa-Lisa, Joseph broke out in tears, already half tipsy, hugging Jotaro (and thus making him highly uncomfortable) and crying into his grandson’s neck about how much he missed him. They had a great evening, with lots of grog, and a very drunk Joseph, who was singing the shanty Grogg Mayles on the top of his lungs, entertaining the rest, before puking violently overboard.

Eventually, a couple of days later, they deciphered the scroll and located the Kraken. Selling both their sloops in exchange for a Brigantine called Caesar, the crew was ready to take on the Kraken. Sailing towards Devil’s Ridge, far east on the sea. The re-encounter shook Avdol to the core, but fear quickly was replaced by adrenaline and fighting spirit.

They killed the Kraken. Without the Brigantine sinking, and the newly formed, now sea-famous crew, calling themselves Stardust Crusaders, kept on sailing the seas, getting rid of horrible sea creatures and even more horrible human beings.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Arrr pirate! How did it go? You had fun? I certainly did while writing.
> 
> Thanks for reading!
> 
> Xoxo Sei <3


	8. decaying reality

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yuugi and Anzu are on the hunt for a serial killer. Little does Anzu know that Yuugi carries a deep secret that might connect him to the killer more than he'd like to admit. 
> 
> Also, why did Kaiba look at him like that?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Crime AU - YGO*  
> Pairing: Somewhat AtemxSetoxYuugi
> 
> Hi! Sorry for taking a long break, Uni is being a hoE <3.
> 
> So, here have so crimE!
> 
> WARNING: Violence, Major Character Death (!!), much PAIN
> 
> Enjoy the ride!

“Are you sure he is our subject, Mazaki?”

“Of course I am, you know I’m always right, Mutou. Look at the photo we found in his wallet!”

Yuugi snorted. Of course she was right. As right as all the other times where she suspected the wrong people to be guilty of a crime, only to let the actual serial killer keep on doing his magnificent work. 

Yuugi wasn’t the kind of officer you’d expect to see. In fact, he was shorter than the average, as well as skinnier as his colleagues. He also didn’t appear tough, bulky, or intimidating to begin with.

But there was a big lie behind all of this. Sure, he didn’t fit the typical ‘police’ employee stereotype, but what he lacked in muscles, he made up with intelligence. And insanity. Most likely insanity.

Why would Yuugi be such a renowned police officer? If all he had was above average smartness, he surely would not be in his current position. 

Yuugi was capable of thinking in very complex ways. Like murderers, drug traffickers, serial killers, and even though his partner Mazaki Anzu always got the praise, he was the one connecting the right strings. It had one simple reason.

Yuugi was a serial killer himself. 

In fact, they were hunting for him at this very moment. He, and his partner, the tall and brown haired woman that would drink a different type of detox-tea each day - hunting for a serial killer that people named ‘the fake Pharaoh’. Honored by the title and the infamous reputation he achieved, Yuugi stared at the victim.

He didn’t kill him. This wasn’t his 7th murder. This was someone else's, mimicking ‘the fake Pharaoh’s’ own actions. But what was he supposed to say? 

_ ‘Oh, this can’t be our killer, I don’t slice the ancient egyptian shape of the Millennium Puzzle into people’s chest by starting on the top left.’ _

“I think we’re close to getting the killer now, Mutou! Let’s head back to the department and plan our next steps. Let people do their work cleaning up this place.”

“Sure, I’ll just take one more look, be right with you, Mazaki!”

“Sure, but don’t make me wait, cheeky boy.”

A very fake snort was his most professional answer, and he turned around, eyeing the victim that he wanted to kill in about roughly… six hours. The pale and white haired young man in front of him, eyes ripped open in a melange of surprise, terror and shock, a knife shoved down his throat, was the last person who could remember anything about Yuugi’s now erased past. Yuugi had to make sure that nobody would ever find out about his previous life, about the reason why he had to kill to stay alive.

It was only his curse to bear. And no one should ever reveal the truth.

Yuugi heard cars arriving, and it was due time that he left. Already turning on his heel, he saw a little black note inside of the victims, Ryou Bakura’s, throat, right next to the knife. His surroundings were clear - and he was a police officer after all - so Yuugi crouched down, carefully grabbing the bloody folded piece of paper and quickly letting it vanish inside the pocket of his blazer. Yuugi loved dressing like he was in a bad TV crime show, and Mazaki hated everything about it.

The drive to the police station was relatively standard, Mazaki listened to some obnoxious music on the radio, Yuugi stared out of the window (but he itched for that soggy note in his pocket).

  
  


“You’re back early. Same killer, I assume?”

“Yes sir!” Mazaki answered stiffly, posture always as if she was intimidated by our head officer, Seto Kaiba. He was a tall bulky guy, and his eyes were as blue as the icicles that they shot when he was not pleased with something, which basically was all the time, but Yuugi didn’t care. Fear was not something he carried around in his vocabulary, his past was too aggressively traumatizing for those kinds of emotions.

“Then get to work, I can’t let this guy kill more people and you just sit on your asses taking coffee breaks.”

“Yes, sir!”

“And Mutou?”

Yuugi looked up, his eyes meeting Seto’s, unphased by the daring and menacing glare.

“Yes…Sir?” 

Kaiba stared, as if he knew something that Yuugi would regret later.

“It’s nothing, continue working.”

Oblivious to the possible reasons of being pierced by Kaiba’s glare, he and Mazaki went to their shared office, and Mazaki erased everything on the whiteboard, much to Yuugi’s surprise.

“I think I was wrong. I don’t know who our subject is, so let’s recap everything and start anew.”

Nodding in agreement, Yuugi excused himself for a short bathroom break. Locking himself inside the last stall (there were three stalls, so the last one wasn’t really far away from the rest), he pulled out the dried and shrivelled folded piece of black paper, carefully unfolding it. 

Hieroglyphs. There were golden hieroglyphs on it, and Yuugi didn’t know who pulled that sick joke on him. Naturally, as the title and the way he murdered people indicated, he could easily translate the content of the tiny scribbled hieroglyphs on the paper.

_ ‘Heba. Harbour. When the sun has set. Bring it with you.’ _

Who on Ra’s fat chicken wings would write an ominous note like that? Heba was his name in ancient egyptian, but no one he knew could read nor write in the ancient symbolic language. Hurrying back to the office, he saw Mazaki already started scribbling wildly on the whiteboard. Nothing made sense, and none of it would ever lead up to Yuugi being the murderer of all… well- most of the subjects.

“I have to leave early, Mazaki.”

“You can’t, we have work to do.”

“I think I caught a stomach bug.”

“Liar.”

Yuugi walked out of the building, the sun slowly setting at the horizon, and made his way to his apartment, a victorious smirk spread across his face. Kaiba didn’t even notice that he’d left, and Yuugi had the feeling that this wouldn’t matter anyway. Back home, he took a long and hot shower, shaved the stubble off of his face, ate some instant noodle soup, downed a much needed whiskey on the rocks, and pulled out a very fancy golden box of medium size from under his bed.

“There you are, I don’t think you would have fit the seventh victim as well, Milly.”

The Millennium Puzzle stared back at him, but naturally didn’t reply. 

“I wonder if whoever wrote that note will be of any help. I wonder what this is all about. Maybe it lures us to the copycat.”

The fancy leather strap that Yuugi used as a necklace cord for the Millennium Puzzle had dried blood on it, so he cleaned it spotless before wearing the Puzzle as a comfortable weighted necklace. Oh, he wasn’t going to be unprepared. The weapon they gave him for his job was in its holster, unlocked and loaded, ready to shoot at any needed time, but Yuugi preferred more traditional methods, and grabbed the gladius dagger on the coffee table, tilting it so it reflected the light perfectly, casting a shimmery reflection on the wall.

Yuugi didn’t care about being seen today, and going in his regular police uniform to kill was by far the safest option. The sun almost set, and it was time to take the quickest route towards the docks. 

As he arrived, he saw someone standing at the last pier, and Yuugi had to rub his eyes to not make sure he was hallucinating. The stranger seemed to have a very similar hairstyle, but as Yuugi approached, he saw that the other person wore some ancient looking clothing, a whole damn lot of golden jewellery and seemed tanner than Yuugi.

“Did you write the note?”

“Aibou… Can’t you remember me?”

“Remember you?”

The stranger turned around, and a deep dark crimson pair of eyes stared at Yuugi. And it frightened him. He felt fear, a fear and an urge to flee like he never felt before.

“Who are you?”

“I’m Atem, and you should know that. After all, you wrote me the note to appear here tonight, Aibou, right?”

“N-no!” Yuugi almost yelled at his double. Who was Atem? Was he the one who cursed him when his grandfather gave him a stupid shiny puzzle seven years ago? Was he the reason he was to this day searching for the person with the puzzle shaped hole in their chest?

“No? But I got your message from the afterlife, Yuugi. You’ve grown so much!” Atem took a good look at his partner, his eyes moving up and down to not miss a detail, before his uplifting smile slowly faded.

“Why do you carry a weapon, Aibou?”

“Why are you calling me Aibou? Also, I’m a police officer, duh.”

Atem went silent for a while, and the unasked questions that were left untold hung heavily in the air. There were steps approaching, but neither Yuugi nor his counterpart were paying enough attention.

“You’re not the Yuugi I know.”

Yuugi shut his eyes when he heard the shot that followed Atem’s statement. He didn’t open them anymore. He couldn’t. 

“Yuugi…! ...-bou!” The voice yelling and begging him to stay away faded. Slowly, and soon, there was only darkness, a darkness that ate him alive and never would leave his heart and soul ever again.

“Kaiba? Why did you do this?”

“He murdered six people in this simulation. Atem, your precious Aibou murdered six people in a simulation that I created.” Kaiba’s voice rang through his test lab, as he walked around the pod where Yuugi was asleep against his will, forever.

Atem’s eyes flickered, and a part of his chest glitched.

“Kaiba, I am but an illusion as well.”

“No, you’re not!”

“Yuugi is dead.”

“He is perfectly fine.”

“You have to let us go.” Atem disintegrated into pixels, ultimately disappearing completely. 

“You are an AI I created, you can’t just talk to me like that!” Kaiba was shouting, his eyes were stinging. Yuugi wasn’t dead, nor was Atem. Everyone was alive, and everyone would bend to his will. His goal to expose Yuugi of his faulty behaviour succeeded, and only when he fell to his knees did the stench of Yuugi’s decaying body rip him into reality.

Kaiba lost everything. He tortured and ultimately killed Yuugi, first, to get back to the Pharaoh, and second, to prove that Yuugi was the reason the Pharaoh left him.

Head in his hands, rocking back and forth, Kaiba knew that the damage he had done was irreparable. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heya, you made it to the end, how did it make you feel <3?
> 
> Thanks for reading!
> 
> Xoxo Sei <3


	9. Elder Dragons forge friendships

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Atem doesn't want a partner. He gets one anyway

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Monster Hunter AU - YGO*
> 
> Pairing: None, only friendship
> 
> I'm sorry if this sucks writing wise, I tired to use a new style where the reader is Atem, and I'm not quite happy with it. But it was fun to try.
> 
> OFC it's about Monster Hunters World, and I took the first scene and re-wrote it :D
> 
> Enjoy the ride <3

“Hey, hey!”

You look up to the person flailing their arms in front of you and notice a very enthusiastic blonde young man trying to catch your attention.

“I’m Joey! Guess we’re on the same team! Have you already found a partner?”

He sat down, spilling some of the frothy beer in his hand on a pile of study books someone clearly intended to read.

“Oops,” Joey said sarcastically, shoving the books and thus the person focusing on them aside, before continuing, “so, do you have one?”

You look down. Of course you don’t. You were always a lone hunter. Not growing up with a mother, and with a father who taught you how to get your things done without any help.

“I don’t, but I also don’t care, really.” Your answer was short, and it lacked any detectable emotion, but Joey couldn't care less.

“Well, you gotta, buddy! It’s a rule for us elite hunters! I think most of them are teamed up already, and I’m lucky my best friend is on the team as well. His name is Tristan.” Joey turned away from you, peering into the crowd, seemingly looking for someone.

“Oi, Tristan, bud, here!”

A tall and rather bulky man with a hairstyle that was a mix of a pompadour, a punk and the eiffel tower turned around, searching the crowded lower deck of the airship for Joey. Upon spotting him, he waved enthusiastically and pushed his way through, shoving others aside, giving apologetic looks left and right.

Taking a seat next to Joey, Tristan took a good look at you, his eyes scanning your face, then your modified armor, before he stopped at your wild and untamable hair. Big spikes, naturally defying gravity in the wildest colors. Purple on the tips, black on the back and golden strands on the front.

“Tristan, this is… I don’t know your name, actually. Well, you, this is Tristan! My partner! I hope after you found your partner, we could maybe hunt as a group of four?”

“Atem, I’m Atem. And I really don’t want a partner.”

“Hey, Atem!” Tristan chimed, and you wanted to get up and leave the two of them for good.

“Ahh, Atem, what a nice name! I’m sure with that name anyo-”

A screech that could burst eardrums if it would be too close made everyone in the lower deck shush and raise their heads in shock. 

You laughed inwardly. Elite hunters, but cowards, as no one dared to raise and go outside, except for you, and the person on the other side of the table next to Joey, who seemed to be reading soggy books just a second ago. You both rushed outside to the upper deck, and out in the open. You spotted a big creature circling around the airship, screeching eardrum shattering sounds. It had dark grey scales that, with the right angle, reflected a slick green shade. Its belly was a dirty mix of red and pink, and there were spikes covering its wings very thoroughly and more sparsely around the limbs and face. The most prominent feature were its gigantic horns above his eyes, a light shade of beige, tips darkened from dry blood. 

“What on earth is that?” An unknown voice next to you asked. 

You fought a lot of monsters before, with your father, alone, in teams (and you hated that), but never did you come across a dragon this size. Even the puffy Zamtrios looked measly small in comparison.

“That is Nergigante, an elder Dragon.” Another new voice joined the conversation. An aged man with long silver hair, crossing his arms pensively leaned against the mast that led up to the crow’s nest.

“And what does an elder dragon want from us?” You asked, fully knowing that an actual elder dragon shouldn’t be flying around an airship of rookies in such an aggressive manner. It shouldn’t even be flying around in broad daylight at all. 

A guttural growl replaced the screeches, and the aged man with a prominent scar over his left eye got out of his relaxed position, taking the big axe that rested on his back. He braced himself for a fight that seemed unavoidable.

Nergigante growled again and aimed for the ship, crashing into the crow’s nest and thus sending the upper part of the mast flying into the nothingness below.

You go to the training rack on the front of the deck, taking the switch-axe, as you hear the voice that previously asked about Nergigante behind you.

“Fetch me the dual blades!”

Grabbing those, hearing the other elite hunters crashing onto the upper deck as well, you saw Nergigante grabbing your fluffy companion Kuriboh, who was hiding in the lower decks before, and you decided to do something very stupid. Nergigante was leaving, but it wasn’t going to leave with your Kuriboh. Your modified armor had a grappling hook on it, and you would use it today. Running towards the tip of the airship, hearing footsteps behind you, you drop the dual blades, holding onto the switch axe and jumping off, grappling hook aimed at Nergigante’s leg.

You succeeded, the hook slung around its leg. You heard screams behind you, and then, you felt an unknown weight holding onto your waist.

“What on Zorah Magdalos’ tiny wings?” The other only person who had been following you outside before was now clutched onto your waist desperately with one arm, holding the dual blades in his only free hand.

“I’m Seto, by the way.”

“Seto. Great. Just… don’t fall.”

The rest of the ‘flight’ was silent, until Nergigante finally dove downwards, causing Seto’s grip to immensely tighten around your waist to the point where it felt too intimate. Nergigante aimed for a forest, but this was no regular forest. The leaves of the trees were tiny crystals that scratched against each other, making unnerving sounds. The trunks were made out of solid rose quartz, and the sheer height the ‘trees’ in that ‘forest’ had was intimidating by itself.

“We have to let go or we will crash into the ground head first!” Seto yelled at you, and you knew that already, as you were trying to figure out a plan. Nergigante had no intentions of decreasing its velocity, and passing the noisy ‘leaves’, you unhooked the grappling hook, aiming for a ‘tree branch’, barely making it. The impact it had on both of you let your grappling hook break, being the only reason the bones in your arm didn’t shatter into tiny splinters. 

You both crashed onto the floor, and luckily, contrary to the threatening appearing crystal leaves, the floor was made covered in some sort of soft moss, and neither Seto nor you got hurt.

Nergigante growled at you, and if you had the time to think, you probably would have come up with a strategy, but this time, it was just instinctive fighting. Grabbing your switch axe, Seto sheathed his dual blades behind you, and you both were ready.

There was no time to communicate, so you only nodded at Seto, and he started making his way to Nergigante in a straight line.

Nergigante swept his claw on the floor, causing Seto to slide to the right, trying to slice into the Elder Dragon’s leg, barely scratching the first layer of the skin.

You tightened your grip on the switch axe, impact meter to change the weapon into the blasting sword still on zero, and started bolting towards Nergigante. The big and dark-scaled Elder Dragon let you tumble by creating a draft against you with its wings, and before you knew, the tip of a claw sliced across your chest, leaving a deep and open cut. 

“Atem! Are you alright?” Seto yelled, circling to Nergigante’s back, trying to hit its long and dangerous looking spiky tail. If it wasn’t for the armor, you would be dead. The cut didn’t bother you, the fact that you couldn’t land a hit did. It was time to cooperate. But you were not one to cooperate, nor did Seto appear to be.

“I’ll get you up with the backside of the axe!” You yelled at him, but he only annoyingly snorted, his blades bonking off the hard scales. Nergigante swept its tail as you tried to make your way to the back legs, and Seto, who didn’t manage to dodge in time, was sent flying into the next tree, his back hitting the rose quartz trunk. You saw him coughing up blood while simultaneously grunting in pain.

You made it to the back of Nergigante, but your axe wasn’t loaded enough, and the basic sharpness of a training axe was only average, so you barely managed to get a small incision on your enemy. There was no use trying to fight like this, so you darted towards Seto, who didn’t get up yet. 

The big Elder Dragon must have known, and he turned to Seto, aiming for a last hit to get the halfway unconscious young man to leave the realms of the living.

“Seto, get up! Hey!”

“Hngh…”

Nergigante came to an abrupt halt, wiggling with its wings as well as its full body, trying to get something off of it. You looked up and saw Kuriboh, your fighting companion, biting into some weirdly shaped ‘thing’ on Nergigante’s neck. Your small friend was thrown off, and your eyes followed Kuriboh as it was landing within a safe distance. 

As you turned your eyes back to Seto, you were shocked to find him nowhere to be seen. There was no time to think about that, as Nergigante turned around, approaching you, red eyes fixated on you.

“Cover your eyes!” You only heard, and shut your eyes, trusting Seto’s voice out of nowhere. A sizzling noise, and only a second after a loud bang with a flash were heard. Nergigante howled in confusion, having gone temporarily blind at the impact. You opened your eyes again and started rushing towards Seto, who was standing next to the tree he previously crashed into. Nergigante’s body was quite close to it, so you didn’t care if he snorted at you for your suggestion, you went for it. Approaching him, he moves towards you so you could land a full blow on him. The impact meter on your switch axe wasn’t high enough yet, but it was enough to send him atop of the Elder Dragon. Turning your axe in the very last moment of a swing that was directed at Seto, he stepped on the blade, and you threw him into the air.

“The weird thing on the back!” You screamed, and he understood, and you knew. Your meter was now full.

“Can you keep him still for a minute? I want to place a bomb next to the ‘thing’.”

With the meter finally at maximum capacity, you turned your axe into a blade, aiming for Nergigante’s front legs, leaving small but effective incisions on the Elder Dragon. The blast meter was full in no time, and you knew exactly how to distract the foe.

“Only a moment longer!” Seto yelled, fumbling around in his back fanny pack.

Nergigante opened its eyes again, ferociously starting to shake its body to try to get Seto off, but he was quick to hold on tight. You saw that it strained him, so it was time for your ultimate attack. The moment Nergigante lowered its head to get a more dynamic control over shaking its body was the moment you ran towards it facefront, ramming your sword-shaped switch axe between its eyes while praying that you could count to three before dying. Nergigante didn’t move, surprised that somebody managed to pierce through the scales, and once you hit the tiny button on the blast meter of your weapon, a small explosion into Nergigante’s head caused it to flinch backwards. At the same time, a big explosion was heard from the Elder Dragon’s back, and Seto was, once again, sent flying. This time, towards you, and his back hit your front so you both got knocked to the ground.

Nergigante swirled in a circle and roared in pain, taking off while bleeding heavily, leaving the fighting area. 

Seto rolled off of you and you both laid on your backs, exhausted from the fight, panting heavily.

“You wanna be my partner? I hate having a partner, but you’re alright.” Blurting out the question, you immediately regretted it. For no particular reason.

“Sure. I didn’t want to have a partner, so we’re on the same page here.”

“Kuri!”

“Is that your fighting pal?” Seto snorted, seeing the little brown ball of fur happily dance around your exhausted bodies.

“So what?”

“Mine is called Blue Eyes. It’s a baby dragon. I hope it’s still on the airship.”

That being said, you saw the airship in the distance, and Kuri fired a flare from your pocket.

You were the best team out of all, and no foe remained unbeaten. Kuri and Blue Eyes became best fighting pals, supporting you and Seto in every possible way. Maybe not being a lone fighter wasn’t such a bad thing sometimes.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yoho you made it! Whadya think about it ? :D
> 
> Xoxo Sei <3


	10. running into pain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jotaro needs to get inked to be able to endure the pain

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Tattoo Parlour - JJBA**
> 
> Major Character Death - Maybe ;).
> 
> Enjoy the ride. Sorry I wrote this while being super tired

How many tattoos did he already have? Jotaro didn’t know, nor could he remember. At this point, it wasn’t really a choice anymore, it was an addiction.

“Dude, you again? You’ve been here… like three days ago?” 

“Yeah, just this one, it will be the last.” Of course that was a lie, he would go to the next parlor in a couple of days and get another new one. His legs were full of fresh tattoos, his left arm was a full sleeve of tribals and other random bullshit he found on the internet. He couldn’t stop. This was the only possibility to not hurt himself in other ways. Getting tattoos constantly made him have a proper sleep schedule, it made him eat well and enough, and it made him forget his best friend's death. What an idiot Kakyoin was…

As the ink was being forced under his skin forever by the arrangement of needles that scraped their way into his body, Jotaro started to think about his past. He got himself a random motive of a purple star on his neck, which would cover up a nasty birthmark perfectly. He knew a good tattooer wouldn’t go over a birthmark, but those guys? They didn’t care. The buzzing noise was almost hypnotic, and Jotaro drowned in his own thoughts again. 

He originally grew up in Japan, and at some point, due to the constant neglect of fatherly love and the clear indication that he didn’t even have a father figure to look up to, as his drug-addict musician jazz son of bitch lie of a father was never home, Jotaro put up an emotional wall that he swore to never let anyone break through again. That was, until a whacky looking transfer student arrived. His name was Kakyoin Noriaki, and he moved there after causing a scandal at another high school. On their first day, he got pushed down the stairs by Kakyoin, scraping his knee open. Ready for a fight, Kakyoin only half-hearted handed him a handkerchief and an apology. Jotaro knew this fight wasn’t over, and as they later crossed paths next to the nursery, it all escalated. Jotaro lost his temper and punched Kakyoin unconscious. Feeling the tiniest crunch of guilt on his mind, he grabbed the transfer students’ limp body and took him home, only to find his mother shrieking at the sight.

 _‘Your grandfather is here’_ She said, and while Kakyoin, who had the most obnoxious red hair with the most outdated haircut was slowly getting back to consciousness, his grandfather talked about some shady business across the world. An estate interest dude all over in Egypt asked for his own grandfather to be there. It was shady, none of the other estate agents were accepted as alternative offer, so Joseph, Jotaro’s grandfather, decided that, with his best employee Avdol, they would travel to Egypt. He asked if Jotaro was interested in any of it, and of course he said yes, anything was better than school, much to his mother’s displeasure.

However it happened, they took that stupid transfer student with them, and even picked up a random french guy between flights, who also aimed to go to Egypt. They were an interesting group, fierce, and when the estate interest, who went by the name DIO, attempted to ambush them once they arrived in Egypt, only the accumulated strength and strategic thinking of the whole team led them to their victory. DIO was put into jail for corrupt business.

Kakyoin and Jotaro became something like best friends, while Kakyoin was the one talking and Jotaro was the one being rude. But it worked, and after school, they both moved to the States together, as roommates and study buddies, naturally. Day by day, Kakyoin seemed more uncomfortable with the living arrangement, and nothing Jotaro did was helping it. Not that he did anything at all. At some point, Kakyoin started being home less and less, sleeping over at a particular shady friends’ place, until he didn’t return anymore. Jotaro didn’t care, he didn’t care about people and their feelings, nor did he care about his feelings.

When he arrived a text from an unknown number and the police in front of his door a couple of minutes later was when he realized how much he fucked up as a person, as a friend, as a buddy, as all of it.

_‘Hey, this is your fellow bud, Hol Horse. I came to inform you that Kakyoin will not return home, he is living with us now. Don’t come looking for him, he’s fine.’_

It didn’t really phase Jotaro, not before the police were there, asking for a young man called Kakyoin Noriaki, who seemingly tried to rob a smaller grocery store while being highly intoxicated. At that point, Jotaro shrugged, saying that Kakyoin moved out and that he had no idea where he went.

Jotaro just kept going on with life, slight hints of worry pestering in his mind about an ‘intoxicated’ Kakyoin. Usually, Kakyoin was wasted after two beers, looking at the wrong screen when they played Mario Kart because he couldn’t focus anymore, or falling asleep in the middle of a fight during Mortal Kombat.

Jotaro lived on. He did, really, until the police rang again, only days later, apologizing for the inconvenience, as they needed Kakyoin’s wallet. Jotaro never asked why Kakyoin left his wallet at home, but something made him ask the officer.

_“Why do you need Kakyoin’s wallet?”_

_“For the credentials.”_

_“Why?”_

_“He’s been found dead.”_

_“Smokey! Fuck, this is confidential and this guy isn’t family, do you want to lose your job?”_

_“Ah, sorry, I didn’t mean to, it just…”_

_“Get the wallet and let’s leave, before that bastard asks more questions!”_

Next to the wallet was a letter. A letter addressed to Jotaro. He never noticed, nor did he care. But his ‘friend’ was declared dead, which didn’t strike him as a possible reality yet, not until the police were gone and he opened the letter, his hands giving away the uneasiness by trembling. He had to sit down after reading it, tears for the first time in years making their way down his cheeks.

_Dear Jotaro,_

_I’m sorry for how I am behaving for the last couple of days. Or weeks. I can’t exactly tell._

_I dropped out of my study field due to absences and missed deadlines, I’m sorry I never told you._

_Sorry, I never told you about any of this, but ever since our trip to Egypt, I’ve fallen in love with you. I knew I shouldn’t have moved to the States with you, as you barely know how emotions work (sorry for calling you out on that). You couldn’t get the hints nor see through my cheery façade. It ached my heart a lot, but I found relief by making new friends. His name is Hol Horse, and there are some others like Boingo, Oingo, and whoever. They gave me pills that made me forget, that made me happy, and I frankly can’t imagine a life without them anymore._

_So, for both of us, I’ll stay away for a while. I’m sure the feelings will cease at some point and then I will come back, I promise._

_Until then, I love you, Jotaro <3\. _

_Your cherry boy Nori._

Jotaro wasn’t the same after, his walls caving in and crashing down, floods of guilt and emotions roaring in his mind, drowning him. He started skipping college, he stopped eating, he wanted to bang his head against the wall until his brain was mush. 

And he found temporary relief by getting hurt through needles stabbing his arms with the most random motives. He never found out what really happened to Kakyoin, and frankly, he was too scared to research. It was all his fault, and he would get every inch of his body tattooed to endure the pressing guilt.

“We’re done, bud. I think I had a bit too much coffee, or pills, the lines are a bit shaky, but don’t worry, I’ll redo them once it’s healed.”

Jotaro smashed 200 dollars onto the counter, leaving, without any aftercare nor left words for the shabby tattooist.

Walking through the streets of the city with a pulsating, bleeding tattoo made him feel alive, and dead at the same time. He wandered down streets that he visited with Kakyoin before, maybe in a subconscious attempt to find his deceased friend around a corner. 

Grabbing some instant ramen noodles and, for nostalgic reasons, Kakyoin’s favourite fruit, cherries, at a grocery store, Jotaro made his way home. His grandfather was rich, and he didn’t quite ask any questions, so he could keep the apartment that he and Kakyoin once shared, even without studying or doing anything.

He pushed the key inside the lock, slowly twisted it right while simultaneously pulling on the door (otherwise the lock wouldn’t unlock, for whatever reasons), and entered the apartment, anything besides the kitchen and his room untouched.

He sighed to himself while kicking off his shoes, idly counting the cherries in the cardboard box that he carried.

“I wish I knew about my feelings as well… I also lo-” Jotaro mumbled to himself, before being startled by the voice interrupting him.

“I’m glad you didn’t throw away my stuff, even if it’s been a couple of months.” A familiar voice said, and upon seeing the person standing in the living room smiling, Jotaro dropped the groceries in shock, cherries scattering across the floor, crushing into a hug he never knew he needed.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thx for reading
> 
> Xoxo Sei <3.


	11. conclusion of dimensions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Atem, rookie magician, is not paying enough attention and gets sucked into something weird.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Magic AU - YGO**
> 
> Pairing: -ish Puzzleshipping (a bit one sided tho).
> 
> Heya! This is the last contribution to AU-gust :)
> 
> I hope you like it, enjoy the ride!

“And if you try to mend the flame that way, combining the two spells, your aura will go invisible. That’s how you stay undercover.” Yuugi smiled at Atem, who, instead of paying attention to the spell he was supposed to mimic, was lost in Yuugi’s eyes. Deep purple eyes sparkled at the vanishing flame in front of them, and if it wasn’t for the fact that their relationship was strictly mentor-student, Atem would have probably proposed on the spot. 

He was roughly 100 years younger than Yuugi, the famous fire magician, but age was but a number when you were a magician.

“-turn.”

“W-what?” Atem stuttered as an answer, finally dragged out of his inner praise for Yuugi, who just sighed at him and shook his head, hiding a smile.

“The invisibility spell. We’re a minority in society, we have to keep our skills hidden. It’s your turn now.”

“I-”

“You didn’t pay attention.”

“No...”

“Of course not.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Why did I take you in as my student again? Last time I heard, people were paying who knows how much money to be under my wing. But you… you just…”

“Oi oi, are you two done? I really need the training room.” Atem and Yuugi both turned their head to the big iron door with detailed ornaments engraved, and Yuugi nodded apologetically.

“Yes, Kaiba, we’re done. I’m sorry. We’ll be taking our leave. Come on, Atem. I have to show you how to do regenerative potions, in case you ever practice what I teach you.”

Atem took a quick bow before Kaiba, the sinister ice magician, and followed Yuugi out of the training room in the basement, curious what an advanced and skilled magician like Seto Kaiba would need to actually ‘train’.

“He usually tries to come up with new shapes for his fancy ice spells. The recent one was a big white dragon with deep blue eyes, and how he’s trying to make one similar to that with three heads.”

“Ah…” Atem looked around, scanning the alien surroundings, still right behind Yuugi, or so he thought. What seemed like a blink of an eye got him lost inside of the big and gloomy-feeling mansion. It was like in all the books that he read and movies that he watched as a child. He could really not understand why magicians were so… old-fashioned. Not even a TV, no cell-phone. Just 19th century furniture and walls that looked like a troll vomited on them.

The quarters he found himself trailing off were weirder than the others. There was no one around, but he knew that the mansion had several employees, constantly buzzing around the hallways, keeping things clean and neat (why was there no spell for that?).

The doors were all black, and the ceiling was so high that Atem couldn’t manage to spot it by just staring up. He walked down the dark red carpeted hallway, checking doors left and right for any symbol of recognition. He had to get out of there, but the corner where he was sure he turned around was no longer there. It was just an endless hallway of doors.

Now if he only listened to the spells that he was supposed to learn, he would maybe have known how to get out of this misery.

“Yuugi? Yuugi! Are you somewhere around here?”

One of the doors opened, much to Atem’s surprise, and not having any other choice, Atem hesitantly entered.

What he saw was something he would never forget. It was a spectacle of events that made no sense.

There was him, and Yuugi, but almost spectral-like, a bunch of other people and… Kaiba? He was wearing some sort of school uniform and Kaiba wore a long coat. Who thought he really had a thing for them?

They stood on the roof of a big mansion, but it looked much cheaper and less elegant than Yuugi’s, the yellow-ish brown material that the walls were built on reminding Atem of rancid mustard. They were inclined in some sort of game, and the holographic monsters looked familiar to Atem, but he couldn’t figure out as to why. Kaiba was standing on the edge of the rooftop, only a step away from falling.

_ ‘I would gladly die for the cards’ _ the other Kaiba said, his eyes glaring at Yuugi, empty, fearless.

_ ‘Yuugi!’ _ The rookie magician Atem knitted his eyebrows, surprised that he would be called Yuugi, but the very angry looking Kaiba continued ‘ _ Slit my throat with your card!’ _

_ ‘I’ll do it, Kaiba!!’  _ Atem, or more, the Atem that was standing there, yelled back with his fierce and baritone voice, and one of the monsters started thrashing its way towards a very nasty looking monster.

_ ‘No!!’ _ Yuugi’s voice echoed through the other Atem’s body, mixing with Atem’s voice in a weird manner, and his look-alike in the punk looking school uniform slumped to his knees, the creature stopping mid-attack.

Suddenly, instead of Atem, there was Yuugi on the floor, sobbing, while Kaiba attacked back, destroying the last of their life points.

Why did Atem turn into Yuugi? What was this about? Atem wouldn’t get an answer, feeling an invisible force roughly pulling him out of the events which he was exposed to, and he found himself in front of the door, shut and locked again.

“That was… odd.” Atem mumbled to himself, checking if there might finally be another door open to leave. There was none, only the long hallway with dark doors left and right, so all he could do was keep on walking down the neverending doorway - hallway of doors, whatever.

It felt like he had been walking for ages, and no yelling for Yuugi, for help, or anything, made the hallway seem shorter. Atem started feeling uneasy. Would his mentor ever find him?

Far ahead, another door opened, and he made his way there, not as if he had another choice, first peering inside, and then surpassing the doorstep.

_ ‘SILENT BURNING!’  _ a Yuugi yelled, and a creature launched forward, attacking the other Atem, as he just stood there, silent, content. People gasped Yuugi’s name, and Atem, watching the spectacle, was not able to figure out ‘who’ they actually were.

Yuugi, again, slumped to his knees, sniffling and crying, holding back sobs as hard as possible.

_ ‘You win. You did it, partner.’ _ the other Atem said, still wearing a school uniform, additional to a weird construct for… cards? On his left wrist.

Yuugi, crying on the floor, only hiccuped, and Atem kneeled down, gently placing a hand on Yuugi’s shoulder.

_ ‘Stand up… The winner shouldn’t be on his knees.’ _

Yuugi didn’t reply, numbly staring at the floor, tears running like they would never cease.

_ ‘If I were you, I wouldn’t cry!’ _ Atem said, encouraging Yuugi to at least look up and mirror his weak attempt to smile. The magician Atem stood there, touched by the sentimentality of the situation, completely oblivious to the situation’s circumstances. Checking out the room, he found that it appeared to be an egyptian setting, and if it wasn’t for his parents to be of egyptian origin, he would have probably deemed this as the weirdest spectacle ever witnessed.

After some rambling from Yuugi’s side and a lot of encouragement from Atem, they got up, and by the looks on everyone’s face, it was time for someone to depart.

A brown haired girl yelled into his direction, asking about the justice and fairness of his decision, while a big door with the eye of the wdjat opened, flooding the room with a bright light. Another person argued with her, and soon, the girl shut up, sadly nodding and agreeing reluctantly

The other person looked at the Atem in front of the door.  _ ‘Even if you’re a king, you’re still Yuugi. Even if a thousand years pass, we’ll still be friends! _ ’ He exclaimed. Why was everyone calling him Yuugi?

He raised his thumb, and the ‘real’ Atem felt a cringey feeling settling inside of him. How silly, to just thumbs up everyone while leaving. Then, as he passed through the gate, he saw his skin turning tanner, and only then did he notice that his skin tone had been way lighter in those hallucinations than in real life. The school uniform was replaced with a fancy looking tunic, a lot of golden jewellery and a headpiece that he could only spot the back of.

The whole room started rattling and the ceiling cracked. The group of people was yelling, turning to take a leave, only to come to an awkward halt, as they all stared at ‘the real’ Atem, who previously entered through the dark door.

_ ‘A-Atem? How? You just?’  _ Yuugi stuttered. Atem noticed that they could actually see him, and getting progressively stressed, he looked around for the door back. Naturally, it was nowhere to be seen.

“I’m not the Atem you know! I’m sorry.”

_ ‘Yuugi, bro, didn’t you just walk through that door? And what’s with your clothing?’ _

Before Atem could reply, he felt himself being sucked out of the dimension he was in, crashing into a loose pile of books, resulting in them scattering across the floor.

“Welcome back.”

“Huh?” Atem looked around, the room slowly snapping into focus. He was in Yuugi’s personal office. No more weird people, no more Atem being called Yuugi.

“What was that all about?”

“You got lost and trailed into the endless hallway of dimensions. It’s a room full of ancient memories, happenings, and, as you probably saw, different dimensions.”

“And how did you find me?”

“Well, I scanned the whole mansion, and unless you would have used an actual invisibility spell, which you didn’t pay attention to beforehand, there was only this option left.”

“Ah…”

Yuugi whispered something under his breath, and the books started rearranging, piling up neatly next to Atem. So there were cleaning spells.

“Now, let’s get the basics of your recovery potion.”

This time, Atem even took notes, and paid extra attention. During some nights, he dreamt of the look that the other Yuugi gave him after his other self left. So pained, and he couldn’t stop thinking if his own mentor would look at him like that as well if he left.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading :)
> 
> I had a blast trying things that pushed me out of my comfort zone! 
> 
> Xoxo Sei <3.


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